Wii 


r^. 


i      ¥ 


Avery  Architectural  and  Fine  Arts  Library 
Gift  of  Seymour  B.  Durst  Old  York  Library 


\ 


«.      ci>  /. 


U 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2013 


http://archive.org/details/greatharrythawcaOOatwe 


Other  Juries  Compared  With  That  in 
the  Thaw  Trial. 


Trial.  Jury  was  out  Verdict, 

Tbaw 47  hours  8  minutes.  . , Disagreement. 

William  J.  Koerner 59  hours  10  minutes.  .First  degree. 

Nan  Patterson  (first) Mistrial. 

Nan  Patterson  (second) 24  hours Disagreement, 

Nan  Patterson  (third) 11  hours  35  minutes.  .Disagreement. 

Roland  B.  Molineux  (first) ...   8  hours First  degree. 

Roland  B.  Molineux  (second). 25  minutes Not  guilty. 

Albert  T.  Patrick 2  hours First  degree. 

Guldensuppe   case 3  hours. First  degree. 

Boscchieter  case 4  hours Second  degree 

Carlisle  W.  Harris 1  hour  10  minutes..  .First  degree. 

Dr.    Buchanan 28  hours First  degree. 

Dr.  S.  J.  Kennedy  (first) 3  hours  13  minutes.  .First  degree. 

Dr.  S.  J.  Kennedy  (second). .   6  hours  35  minutes.  .Disagreement. 

Dr.  S.  J.  Kennedy  (third)...  .22  hours  5  minutes. .  .Disagreement. 

Burton  C.  Webster  (first) 19  hours. Disagreement, 

Burton  C.  Webster  (second). .   4  hours Manslaughter. 

David   Hannigan 0  hours  20  minutes.  .  Not  guilty. 


MADISON  SQUARE   GARDEN 
The  Scene  of  the  Thaw- White  Tragedy. 


THE  TOMBS  PRISON 

Window  in  Circle  Murks  Tliaw's  CeJl. 


THE  GREAT 

HARRY  THAW  CASE 

OR 

A  Woman's   Sacrifice 


BY 

BENJ.    H.   ATWELL 


A  graphic  and  truthful  narrative  of  the  nnost    sensational 
case  in  modern  jurisprudence.     A  thrilling  account   of 
a  young  girl's   struggles  in  her  battle  for  fame  and 
fortune,  and   the    unconquered  love  of   the  man 
who  has  baffled  the  world's  greatest  alienists; 
with    portraits   of    many    leading    charac- 
ters, famous  society  leaders  and  noted 
actresses  who  have   made  this  case 
the  talk  of  America  and  Europe 


ILLUSTRATED 


CHICAGO 

LAIRD  &  LEE,  Publisher3 


'^i 

^ 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1907, 

By  William  H.  Lee, 

in  the  office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at 
Washington,  D.  C. 


ALL    RIGHTS    RESERVED 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Chronology  of  the  Case 6 

Chapter 

I.   Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw,  the  Woman  in  the  Case,  1 1 

II.   Harry  Thaw's  Courtship  and  Marriage,     .     .  19 

III.  The  Story  that  Startled  the  World.     ...  28 

IV.  Stanford  White,  Creator  and  Destroyer,    .     .  41 
V.  Greatest  Legal  Battle  of  the  Age  Opens,      .  53 

VI.  "I  swear  Harry  K.  Thaw  was  Insane,"     .     .  68 

VII.  A  Human  Sacrifice  on  the  Altar  of  Love,     .  78 

VIII.   Evelyn  Reveals  White  as  a  Fearful  Monster,  87 

IX.  Intrigue  like    those  in  Days  of    Nero.     .     .  102 

X.  White  on  Verge  of  Arrest  when  Shot,       •     .  120 
XI.  Thaw's  Will  Disclosed  Fear  of  Assassination,  128 

XII.  The  Hidden  Witness  to  the   Proposal,     ,     .  142 

XIII.  Lived  on  Bounty  of  Stanford  White,      .     .  158 

XIV.  Thaw's  Mother  on  the  Stand 164 

XV.  Scathing  Denunciation  by  Jerome,     .     .     .  182 

XVI.  Shocking  Disclosures  in  Famous  Affidavit,    .  193 

XVII.  Jerome  Calls  Thaw  Madman 201 

XVIII.   Lunacy  Commission  is  Appointed 213 

XIX.  Commission  Finds  Thaw  Sane 220 

XX.  Delmas,  "The  Napoleon  of  the  Bar"     .     .  223 

XXI.  Delmas'  Speech   Moves  Jurors,     .     .         .  228 

XXII.  ''The  Unwritten  Law"  —  The  Defense  Ends,  244 

XXIII.  "Thou  Shall  Not  Kill,"   Quotes  Jerome,     .  262 

XXIV.  The  Judge's  Charge  to  the  Jury  — Thaw  in 

Collapse 278 

XXV.   Deliberations  of  the  Jury 285 

XXVI.  Ending  of  the  Trial — Jury  Disagrees,      .     .  293 


PREFACE. 

A  o^reat  trial  has  come  to  a  close.  It  has  attracted 
the  attention  of  the  entire  civilized  world  for  three 
widely  separated  and  distinctly  defined  reasons — the 
unusual  degree  of  heart  interest  underlying  the  trag- 
edy that  brought  it  about ;  the  startling  and  sensa- 
tional disclosures  of  life  in  the  great  metropolis,  and 
the  legal  precedents  established,  particularly  in  re- 
lation to  the  universal,  unwritten  law. 

Realizing  that  this  remarkable  case  is  destined  to 
be  more  than  a  passing  sensation  of  the  hour  or  the 
year;  that  it  will  exercise  a  wide  influence  on  the 
thought  and  lives  of  uncounted  thousands,  it  has 
seemed  meet  that  a  carefully  prepared,  clean  and  ac- 
curate record  should  be  given  the  world  in  perma- 
nent form. 

This,  becau.se  its  eloquent  sermon  cost  too  great  a 
price  to  be  lost,  and  its  awful  warning  against  a 
vicious  life  is  of  too  great  value  to  the  world  to  trust 
it  to  fitful  memory. 

Men  standing  on  the;  brink  of  the  precipice  hewn 
by  unbridled  passion,  may  read  in  the  terrible  fate 
that  overtook  Stanford  White  at  the  hands  of  an 
avenging  husband,  an  injunction  against  the  worst 
in  their  nature  and  reflect  before  it  is  too  late. 

IMothers,  tempted  by  the  pressing,  material  needs 
of  the  day  to  permit  tender  daughters  to  aid  in  the 

7 


8  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

family  support  by  entering  occupations,  which, 
while  not  vicious,  are  beset  by  pitfalls,  may  think 
twice  before  reaching  a  decision  after  contemplating 
the  sufferings  and  humiliations  suffered  by  Evelyn 
Nesbit. 

Young  women  in  the  exuberance  of  youth,  hun- 
gering for  the  empty  bubble  known  as  a  career,  may 
recall  the  pathetic  picture  presented  by  the  same  girl 
when  on  the  witness  stand  as  Mrs.  Thaw,  and  recoil 
from  thought  of  a  butterfly  life  after  viewing  that 
crushed,  unhappy  figure. 

Even  more  exalted  personages  may  find  profit  in 
taking  inventory  of  the  Thaw  case.  Prosecuting  at- 
torneys are  found  in  every  county  in  this  broad  land. 
Let  them  observe  the  attitude  of  District  Attorney 
Jerome  in  this  case  and  search  out  their  minds  to 
determine  if  they  are  ever  guilty  of  persecution  in 
the  name  of  prosecution,  or  inflict  unnecessary  tor- 
ture on  the  innocent,  to  vindicate  an  immaterial  the- 
ory, of  interest  only  to  the  occupants  of  the  grand- 
stand. 

Modern  times  reveal  no  parallel  to  the  Thaw  case 
in  its  various  phases.  Shakespeare's  wonderful  cre- 
ations of  fancy  contain  no  more  thrilling  features  nor 
more  humanizing  passages  in  their  philosophic  ap- 
plication than  have  been  disclosed  by  this  life  tragedy 
of  love,  hate,  villainy,  perfidy  and  outraged  inno- 
cence. 

All  the  emotions  known  to  the  human  heart  eiit^r 


PREFACE  9 

into  it,  ranging  from  boundless,  mercenary  cupidity 
and  indescribable  crueltv  to  self  sacrificing  love  that 
has  found  no  test  too  severe. 

Preachments  covering  the  scope  of  every  sermon 
life's  experiences  produce  abound  in  its  every  devel- 
opment in  such  blunt,  powerful  form  that  he  who 
rurLS  may  read  and  he  who  reads  may  bring  them 
home  to  himself. 

Precedents  in  medical  jurisprudence  have  been  es- 
tablished, medical  and  legal  reputations  made  and 
lost. 

To  the  student  of  human  nature,  then,  this  vol- 
ume will  carry  a  message.  Also,  to  the  moralist  and 
the  teacher,  the  physician  and  the  lawyer.  Nor  will 
this  list  exhaust  the  field  of  those  who  may  find  some- 
thing of  interest  and  benefit  within  its  pages,  for 
the  field  is  as  broad  as  mankind. 

If  it  is  received  in  the  spirit  in  which  it  is  given  to 
the  public,  free  from  any  disposition  to  pander  to 
mere  morbid  curiosity  or  to  exploit  that  which  is  rep- 
rehensible in  moral  makeup,  it  shall  have  accom- 
plished the  purpose  of 

The  Author. 


^^'^SSSSSa^'' 


EVELYN  NESBIT  AS    "AN  AMERICAN  BEAUTY" 
.when  she  was  i8  years  old. 


CHAPTER     I. 

Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw,  the  "Woman  in  the  Case." 

yAMED  FOR  BEAUTY  EVEN  AS  A  LITTLE  CHILD  — BORN  JN 
LITTLE  PENNSYLVANIA  TOWN  — WHEN  ONLY  13  YEARS 
OLD  SHE  BEGAN  AS  AN  ARTIST 's  MODEL  — SOUGHT  ()\T 
BY  FAMOUS  PAINTERS— ENGAGED  AS  A  CHORUS  GIRL 
BECAUSE  OF  HER  BEAUTY  — LURED  FRO:\I  INNOCENT 
CHILDHOOD  BY  STANFORD  WHITE,  MILLIONAIRE  ARCHI- 
TECT—F0R:MED  THE  ACQUAINTANCE  OF  HARRY  THAW, 
RICH  YOUNG  PITTSBURGH  MAN  —  SENT  AWAY  TO 
SCHOOL  BY  WHITE— SNUBBED  BY  FELLOW  STUDENTS- 
FORCED  TO  QUIT  SCHOOL. 

Evelyn  Nesbit,  later  to  be  known  as  "the  nu)<{ 
beautiful  artists'  model  in  the  world,"  was  bo]*]i  in 
Tarentum,  Pa.,  a  little  villa<»e  near  Pittsl)ur^,  in 
1884.  Even  as  a  baby  she  was  surpassingly  pretty, 
and  her  face,  like  that  of  a  dark-haired  cherub,  at- 
tracted hundreds  of  visitors  to  her  parents'  linmbic 
home,  a  little  two  stoiy  frame  cottage  worth  \vs^ 
than  J|^2,000. 

Evelyn's  life  was  like  that  of  most  youn<»'  t»irls  in 
country  towns.  She  wont  to  Sunday  .school  regu- 
larly, and  at  the  age  of  five  made  her  first  public 
appearance   in   a   Sunday  school  entertainment. 

The  family  moved  to  Pittsburg,  and  Evelyn  was 
still  a  school^^irl  when  the  death  of  her  fatht;r,  Win- 
fip|d  Scott  X<'sbit,  a  stru^TiIing  lawyer,  left  her 
mothei'  and  h<MSelf  nlmo^-t  rh^stitute.     Incumbrances 

11 


12  THE  GEE  AT  THAW  CASE 

on  the  little  property  left  by  her  father  shut  off  al- 
most every  source  of  income.  The  schoolgirl  had  to 
face  a  more  serious  problem  than  usually  falls  to  the 
lot  of  a  girl  in  short  skirts. 

When  Evelyn  was  only  thirteen  years  old,  a  Mrs. 
Darragh,  a  portrait  painter  and  miniature  artist  of 
Philadelphia,  discovered  her  rare  beauty  and  painted 
her  head.  Later  Phillips,  a  photographer  of  Phila- 
delphia, asked  the  Pittsburg  child  to  sit  for  several 
photographic  studies.  The  pictures  were  printed  in 
an  art  magazine  and  attracted  attention.  Before  her 
father  had  been  dead  long  Evelyn  Nesbit  found  that 
she  was  being  sought  by  such  artists  as  Carroll  Beck- 
with,  F.  S.  Church,  Carl  Blenner,  and  J.  Wells 
Champney. 

Demand  for  the  privilege  of  photographing  her 
beautiful  face  or  portraying  it  on  canvas  became  so 
great  that  the  money  earned  by  the  little  girl  by  pos- 
ing became  the  mainstay  of  the  family.  With  her 
mother  she  moved  to  New  York,  took  rooms  in  a  low- 
priced  boarding  house,  and  began  frequenting  studios 
of  famous  artists.    Her  work  was  in  constant  demand 

It  was  while  she  was  posing  that  she  met  the  man 
whose  acts  toward  her  resulted  in  his  killing  by 
Harry  Kendall  Thaw.  It  was  when  her  mother, 
modest,  yet  proud  of  her  wonderfully  beautiful  litt](3 
daughter  just  budding  into  girlhood,  took  her  to  a 
photographer's  that  P]velyn  Nesbit  flashed  into  pub- 
lic view  as  a  famous  beauty.     The  pictures  were  so 


WOMAN  IN  THE  CASE  13 

remarkable,  so  perfect  in  feature,  so  graceful  in  every 
outline  that  the  artist  exhibited  them  in  his  studio. 

Little  wonder  it  was  that  every  one  who  passed  the 
show  case  stopped  spell -bound  by  the  youthful  beauty 
of  the  subject;  little  wonder  that  Charles  Dana  Gib- 
son, then  in  the  zenith  of  his  success,  with  his  studies 
of  the  American  girl,  looked  upon  Evelyn's  photo- 
graphs in  rapture  and  wished  immediately  to  meet 
the  original  and  arrange  to  have  her  pose  for  him. 

One  day  as  the  little  m.odel  was  about  to  leave  the 
studio  she  was  met  by  a  man  about  to  enter  the  door. 

By  jove!  Gibson,  who  is  this  little  vision  of  the 
<'mpyrean  blue  ?  Tell  me.  I  must  know  the  little 
sprite,  whether  she  is  of  this  earth  or  just  a  fairy 
from  out  of  wonderland,'*  the  man  added,  lightly,  as 
he  held  the  girl  a  shy  and  pretty  captive  at  the  door. 

The  usual  unconventional  studio  introduction  fol- 
lowed. The  man  who  gasped  in  admiration  of  the 
exquisite  flower-like  beauty  of  the  young  girl  was 
Stanford  "White,  the  renowTied  architect ;  the  girl  was 
j^'lorence  Evelyn  Nesbit,  artist's  model. 

The  man  of  the  world  saw  in  the  innocent  young 
thing  an  easy  victim  to  his  wiles,  and  opportunities 
were  made  for  him  to  meet  the  girl,  whom  he  planned 
to  make  his  puppet,  his  plaything,  his  slave. 

His  efforts  were  not  long  in  being  crowned  by  suc- 
cess. The  pretty  trinkets  which  the  girl  loved  so  well 
were  hers  with  the  first  expression  of  h(^r  desire;  she 
was  flattered  wlu-n  she  realized  from  whom  she  was 


14  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

roceivinpr  adulation,  the  subtle,  crafty  methods  of  the 
connoisseur  of  beauty,  of  art,  the  epicure  in  all  his 
fleshly  wants,  the  polished  manner,  tlie  refined  taste 
that  were  his  by  birth,  all  added  a  charm  new  and  ir- 
resistible to  the  ingenuous,  luxury-loving  little  model 
with  the  eyes  of  a  Madonna  and  the  smile  of  a  siren.. 

Soon  the  beautiful,  innocent  Evelyn  Nesbit  was 
ensconced  in  a  high  class  apartment  house  and  Stan- 
ford White,  who  paid  the  bills,  became  a  constant 
visitor  to  tlic  magnificently  appointed  suite. 

There  she  lived  in  ease  and  the  artist-architect 
brought  his  men  friends  to  see  this  girl,  and  boasted 
that  sh(^  was  his  "by  right  of  discovery.*'  She  was 
taken  to  the  restaurants  fmjuented  by  the  men  and 
women  about  town.  Evelyn  Nesbit  became  the  toast 
of  llie  companions  of  White. 

Finally  a  stage  career  was  mapped  out  for  her. 
White  managed  it,  and  Evelyn  Nesbit 's  fame  spread 
as  she  flaunted  her  lithe  form  and  graceful  beauty  in 
''Florodora'*  and  ''The  Wild  Rose.'' 

It  was  at  this  time  that  Harry  Thaw  made  her  ac- 
rjuaintance.  The  late  hours  and  the  endless,  restless 
round  of  pleasure  had  told  upon  the  fragile  girl  and 
she  fell  ill. 

A  European  trip  was  planned  for  her  and  Stan- 
ford White  was  one  of  the  party.  In  a  few  weeks 
they  returned  to  New  York,  but  Evelyn  Nesbit  could 
never  dance  again.  Instead  she  was  sent  to  a  board- 
ing school  where  White  hoped  that  she  would  rej^ain 


^VOMAN  IN  THE  CASE  15 

her  health  sufficiently  to  reappear  upon  the  stage  and, 
incidentally,  learn  better  how  to  spell  and  write. 

At  this  time  Evelyn  Nesbit  was  a  mere  slip  of  a 
j^irl,  just  sixteen,  with  a  wealth  of  brown  hair  and 
^reat  brown  eyes.  It  was  in  Mrs.  Henry  C.  De  Mille's 
school  that  White  chose  to  have  his  "ward''  educated, 
at  **Pimlico,"  N.  J.  Stanford  "White's  checks  were 
forwarded  with  great  regularity  and  the  girl,  known 
in  the  school  to  be  the  ''ward"  of  the  great  and  pros- 
perous architect,  became  a  favorite  among  the  girLs — 
girls  of  the  most  exclusive  of  families. 

It  began  soon  to  be  whispered  that  Evelyn  Nesbit 
was  a  soubrette  and  exceptions  were  taken  to  the  visits 
of  Stanford  White  and  of  Harry  Thaw  and  other  men 
of  their  types. 

One  day  Stanford  White  went  to  the  school  in  a  big 
touring  car  and  invited  some  of  the  pupils  for  a  ride. 
During  that  ride  his  conversation  was  of  such  a 
nature  that  three  of  the  girls  insisted  upon  being  per- 
mitted to  alight  and  they  returned  to  the  school  on 
foot. 

This  caused  such  an  uproar  in  the  school  that 
Evelyn  was  asked  to  leave,  but  she-  was  prevented 
from  going  by  a  sudden  illness.  During  this  illness, 
Harry  Thaw,  who  had  made  her  acquaintance  in  New 
York  while  she  was  on  the  stage,  was  in  constant  at- 
tendance upon  her  and  when  the  girl  was  finaflly 
forced  to  leave,  Thaw  was  there  to  defray  all  her  ex- 
penses. 


16  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Stanford  White  meanwhile  had  deserted  the  beau- 
tiful girl  and  refused  to  pay  her  tuition,  which 
amounted  to  $3,000.  He  declared  he  was  Evelyn's 
"guardian"  by  courtesy  only.  His  failure  to  keep 
his  word  to  defray  the  girl's  expenses  was  a  severe 
blow  to  Mrs.  De  Mille,  whose  school  had  become  so 
depleted  through  the  notoriety  that  he  had  brought 
upon  it  that  it  was  forced  to  disband. 

Meanwhile  Thaw  became  desperately  in  love  with 
the  girl  and  took  her  back  to  her  mother  and  told  her 
of  his  love  and  begged  her  to  take  Evelyn  to  Europe 
as  his  guest.  It  was  in  Pittsburg  sometime  later  that 
he  married  the  girl  who  had  been  spurned  and  repudi- 
ated and  left  friendless  by  the  man  who  claimed  her 
"b}^  right  of  discovery." 

Evelyn's  stage  career  was  brief  but  brilliant. 
While  an  actress  in  musical  comedies  she  was  pro- 
nounced by  all  ''The  most  beautiful  woman  behind 
the  footlights,"  but  her  natural  beauty  was  destined  to 
become  fatal— fatal  to  Stanford  White— fatal  to  her 
own  good  name— fatal  to  her  husband's  hope  of  hap- 
piness. 


"The  most  beautiful  woman  behind  the  footlights.  ' 

PICTURE  OF  EVELYN   NESBIT 

taken  just  before  her  marripge,  and  considered  her  best  likeness. 


CHAPTER     II. 

Harry   Thaw's   Sensational   Courtship   and 

Marriage. 

YOUNG    millionaire's    ROMANCE   STARTLED   THE    WORLD 

—  MET  EVELYN  NESBIT  AFTER  A  PLAY  WHEN  SHE  WAS 
ONLY   17  YEARS  OLD  — FRIENDSHIP  RIPENED  INTO  LOVE 

—  THE  youth's  STRANGE  CAREER— WENT  TO  EUROPE 
WITH  THE  FOOTLIGHT  AND  STUDIO  BEAUTY— REPORT 
OF  MARRIAGE  ABROAD  SHOCICED  RELATIVES  — DENIED  BY 
BOTH  THE  SUPPOSED  BRIDE  AND  GROOM— RETURNED 
TO  NEW  YORK— EJECTED  FROM  FOUR  HOTELS— HAD 
WEDDING  CEREMONY  PERFORMED  IN  PITTSBURG  — 
MOTHER  OF  THAW  AT  FIRST  REFUSED  TO  ACCEPT 
EVELYN  AS  DAUGHTER— OFF^ERED  $250,000  TO  GIVE  UP 
HARRY. 

TTarry  Kendall  Thaw's  winning  of  Florence  Evelyn 
Xesbit  stands  out  as  a  thrillin<2:  chapter  in  the  great 
book  ofl(»ve.  The  bio^rraphy  of  each  of  the  parties 
was  studded  with  the  bizarre.  Fifty  thousand  dol- 
lar dinners,  ejectments  from  hotels,  diamonds  and 
ai-and  pianos  thrown  about  as  carelessly  as  if  they 
were  trinkets,  family  opposition,  and  remarkably 
romantic  love  were  some  of  the  ingredients. 

Harry  Thaw's  eyes  first  fell  upon  Evelyn  Ncsbit 
whon  she  was  only  seventeen  years  old.  She  had  car- 
ried her  beauty  from  Pittsburg  to  the  studios  of  New 

19 


20  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

m 

York.  Then  the  stage  called  lier,  and  her  brunette 
pulchritude  charmed  the  scion  of  one  of  Pittsburg's 
Avealthiest  families.  Somebody  presented  her  to 
Thaw  at  a  gay  party  of  young  and  beautiful  stage 
girls  who  Avere  having  a  costly  supper  after  the  play 
at  an  exclusive  restaurant.  All  this  time  Evelyn  was 
supposed  to  be  under  the  eye  of  her  mother,  who,  a 
few  years  previously,  had  doffed  her  widow's  Aveeds 
and  married  Charles  J.  Holman,  a  Pittsburg  broker. 
Mrs.  Holman  told  her  friends  she  keenly  realized  the 
perils  that  beset  the  feet  of  beautiful  young  girls,  but 
her  chaperonage  did  not  save  her  own  daughter. 

Thaw  loved  the  daughter,  he  said,  as  soon  as  he 
saw  her.  His  appreciation  of  feminine  loveliness  had 
always  been  one  of  his  strongest  qualities.  Only  three 
years  before  he  met  Miss  Nesbit  he  had  given  a  $50,- 
000  dinner  in  Paris  to  tAventy-five  of  the  most  beauti- 
ful women  1:hat  he  could  get  together.  Cleo  de  ^Merode, 
at  whose  feet  the  King  of  the  Belgians  had  laid  royal 
tribute,  Anna  Robinson  of  this  country  and  other 
famous  beauties  were  at  that  banquet.  Sousa's  band 
received  a  check  for  $1,500  for  furnishing  the  music. 
This  dinner  and  many  of  Thaw's  other  enjoyments 
were  made  possible  by  the  fact  that  Avhen  his  father 
died  he  left  a  fortune  of  $40,000,000.  This  father  was 
AVilliam  Thaw  and  he  had  been  prominent  in  Pennsyl- 
vania railroad  and  steel  affairs.  His  widow  and  the 
seven  children  inherited  the  fortune. 

Harry  Thaw's  penchant  for  economy  was  pretty 


HARRY   K.   THAW 
At  the  time  of  his  marriage. 


COURTSHIP  AXD  MARFIAGE  23 

well  exemplified  by  the  will  under  which  his  annual 
income  was  to  be  $2,500,  because,  as  his  father  said, 
he  would  spend  as  much  as  he  got  anyway.  His  moth- 
er, though,  let  him  have  annually  sums  that  were 
never  under  $40,000. 

With  his  money  he  set  out  to  dazzle  the  little  Miss 
Nesbit,  who  back  home  had  often  trudged  by  the 
magnificent  Thaw  mansion  and  possibly  had  won- 
dered in  her  simple  impecunious  way  as  to  the  man- 
ner of  life  that  can  be  lived  by  a  family  that  has 
$-40,000,000  to  dispose  of. 

It  didn't  take  Harry  Thaw  long  to  show  her  how 
some  of  that  money  might  be  spent.  To  her  apart- 
ments in  the  Audubon  in  New  York,  an  apartment 
building  beloved  of  the  chorus  girl,  he  caused  to  be 
sent  an  exquisite  grand  piano.  Miss  Nesbit 's  mother 
caused  it  to  be  carted  away.  So  also  with  many  of 
the  jewels  which  Thaw  sent  up. 

While  Thaw's  wooing  was  in  progress  the  name  of 
his  family  loomed  large  in  the  public  prints  because 
of  the  marriage  of  Harry  Thaw's  sister  Alice  to  the 
Earl  of  Yarmouth.  On  the  very  day  of  the  wedding, 
the  earl  halted  the  ceremony  by  announcing  that  un- 
less satisfactory  financial  arrangements  were  made 
at  once  there  would  be  no  marriage.  The  money  was 
paid,  although  Harry  Thaw  told  reporters  that  if  he 
had  been  there  we  would  have  kicked  the  Earl  down 
stairs.  A  little  later,  however,  his  sister  Alice,  Count- 
ess of  Yarmouth,  repaid  the  harsh  blow  at  the  husband 


24  THE  GEEA^  THAW  CASE 

by  publicly  snubbing  Evelyn  Nesbit  at  an  English 
race  track. 

About  the  time  of  this  marriage  Evelyn  Nesbit 
went  to  Europe.  Harry  Thaw  followed  her.  They 
went  automobiling,  and  the  charming  brunette  fell 
madly  in  love  with  the  young  heir  to  nearly  $40,000,- 
000 ;  he  had  been  in  love  with  her  since  the  evening 
they  first  met. 

Then,  all  because  they  were  arrested  for  exceeding 
the  automobile  speed  laws  in  Switzerland,  the  curtain 
was  raised  upon  their  romance,  that  all  the  world 
might  see.  In  the  police  court  to  which  they  were 
taken  the  impression,  that  they  were  husband  and  wife 
gained  ground.  News  of  the  supposed  marriage  was 
telegraphed  to  London  and  thence  to  America.  Thaw's 
relatives  and  rich  society  friends  were  shocked.  They 
had  registered  and  stopped  at  the  Carlton  hotel  in 
London  as  husband  and  wife,  and  the  report  of  their 
marriage  was  generally  believed. 

When  they  returned  to  New  York  they  had  a  stormy 
experience.  On  their  arrival  they  discovered  that 
Mrs.  William  Thaw,  mother  of  Harry,  had  announced 
that  under  no  conditions  would  she  accept  Evelyn 
Nesbit  for  a  daughter-in-law,  and  that  if  her  son  had 
really  married  the  beautiful  young  model  she  would 
promptly  disown  him. 

Harry  didn't  want  to  lose  his  fortune,  and  it  is 
probable  that  the  girl  didn't  desire  to  see  him  im- 
poverished, either.    So  they  faced  the  dilemma.    Fear 


COURTSHIP  AND  MABBIAGE  25 

of  the  wrath  of  the  mother  forced  them  to  deny  that 
the  union  had  been  consummated,  yet  at  the  same  time 
thev  were  too^ether  in  New  York  at  the  Cumberland 
hotel,  and  the  proprietor  demanded  that  either  Thaw 
write  "wife"  after  his  name  on  the  register  or  quit 
the  hotel. 

Thaw  refused  to  do  this,  and  the  couple  went  to 
another  hotel  with  the  same  result.  After  they  had 
been  ejected  from  four  hostelries  they  separated.  All 
ihis  time  there  had  been  no  public  announcement  by 
either  of  them  that  they  had  been  married,  as  sup- 
posed. 

Miss  Nesbit,  as  she  still  insisted  on  being  called, 
went  to  a  boarding  house  and  the  young  millionaire 
made  efforts  to  placate  his  mother.  He  was  success- 
ful, but  not  until  an  open  rumor  had  it  that  Miss 
Nesbit  had  refused  an  off'er  of  $250,000  in  cash  to  give- 
up  Harry  and  quit  the  United  States. 

Wlien  the  mother  did  agree  to  the  union  she  acted 
handsomely,  and  the  exquisite  beauty  was  quietly 
married  at  the  home  of  Rev.  William  L.  McEwan, 
pastor  of  the  Third  Presbyterian  church,  Pittsburg, 
^Irs.  Thaw  and  the  members  of  both  families  being 
present.     This  was  on  April  4,  1905. 

The  Thaws  left  Lyndhurst,  the  magnificent  Thaw 
country  mansion  near  Pittsburg,  and  went  to  New 
York.  They  varied  their  life  in  the  metropolis  by 
trips  to  Pittsburg,  but  did  not  go  to  Newport,  where 
Benjamin  Thaw,  Harry's  brother,  lived.  In  Pittsburg, 


26       THE  GREAT  THA^Y  CASE 

l\Irs.  William  Thaw  gave  several  receptions  to  the 
actress-model  wife  of  her  son.  Pittsburg  society 
started  to  squabble  over  these  affairs,  but  finally  at- 
tended the  receptions  and  accepted  Evelyn  as  a  mem- 
ber of  their  exclusive  set. 

The  charms  of  the  young  Mrs.  Thaw  had  disarmed 
much  of  the  criticism.  Mrs.  Holman  grew  to  like  her 
son-in-lavr,  although  not  long  before  she  had  threat- 
enried  to  apply  a  rawhide  horsewhip  to  him,  wh:Ie 
Harry  and  her  daughter  were  living  together  in  New 
York,  apparently  unmarried. 

The  Thaws  themselves,  when  they  saw  how  hard 
young  Mrs.  Thaw  was  trying  to  restrict  the  money- 
spending  habits  of  her  husband,  forgave  her  com- 
pletely. They  even  regretted,  some  of  them  said,  that 
they  had  offered  to  bur  her  off.  When  that  offer  was 
made — it  Avas  during  the  stormy  days  in  New  York,  — 
Miss  Nesbit  had  declared  "My  heart  is  not  for  sale!" 

The  story  of  the  wedding— a  remarkably  simple  af- 
fair—is interesting  in  that  it  showed  Evelyn  Nesbit 's 
love  for  simplicity  in  her  private  life.  Although  fame 
and  fortune  were  linked  in  a  remarkable  union,  the 
wedding  ceremony  took  place  almost  in  secret. 

The  day  before  the  wedding  Mr.  Thaw  went  to  the 
Hotel  Schenley,  and  in  the  grillroom  met  some  of  his 
old  associates.  He  remarked  that  in  less  than  a 
week  he  would  be  a  benedict.  Steins  were  raised  high 
and  his  companicms  declared  that  it  should  be  made 
his  bachelor  dinner.    Their  host  swore  them  to  seerecv. 


COURTSHIP  AND  MARRIAGE  27 

and  then  the  story  of  the  coming  nuptials  was  di- 
vulged to  the  chosen  few. 

Miss  Nesbit  arrived  in  Pittsburg  with  her  chaperon, 
Miss  Pierce,  and  went  to  the  home  of  her  parents, 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  C.  J.  Holman,  in  Oakland.  In  the  after- 
noon Harry  Thaw  went  to  the  residence  of  Dr.  Mc- 
Ewan  in  South  Negley  avenue  and  arranged  for  the 
wedding. 

It  was  a  few  minutes  after  5  o'clock  when  three 
carriages  drove  to  Dr.  ]\IcEwan's  residence.  From 
them  alighted  Mr.  Thaw,  his  mother,  iMrs.  William 
Thaw,  his  brother,  Josiah  Copley  Thaw,  and  Fred- 
rick C.  Perkins.  Miss  Nesbit  came  on  the  arm  of  her 
stepfather,  C.  J.  Holman,  and  was  followed  by  her 
mother,  Mrs.  Holman. 

Miss  Nesbit  wore  a  traveling  costume  of  dark  ma- 
terial, which  was  almost  hidden  in  a  light  three-quar- 
ter opera  cloak  trimmed  with  rare  lace  and  ornamented 
with  Persian  floral  designs.  She  wore  a  hat  that  in- 
dicated a  slight  lingering  toward  the  winter  season, 
and  across  the  silk  entwined  brim  was  a  gorgeous 
feather  of  three  shades  of  browna. 

Miss  Nesbit  did  not  remove  her  cloak  or  hat  and  the 
})ridegroom  laid  his  headgear  and  top  coat  over  the 
banisters  before  he  walked  into  the  drawing-room. 
When  the  ceremony  was  concluded  the  party  left  the 
parsonage.  Dinner  was  served  at  Lyndhurst,  and  the 
bride  and  bridegroom  hastened  to  the  railway  station 
to  leave  for  their  journey  East. 


CHAPTER     III. 

Story  of  the  Killing  That  Startled  the  World. 

STANFORD  WHITE  ASSASSINATED  BY  CRAZED  HUSBAND 
WHILE  ATTENDING  THE  PLAY  — ON  ROOF  GARDEN  OF 
MADISON  SQUARE— THAW  W^.U^KED  RAPIDLY  TO  TABLE 
.WHILE  GIRLS  WERE  DANCING— AT  LAST  NOTE  OF  SONG 
HE  DREW  REVOLVER,  LEVELED  IT  AT  WHITE— SAID  '^YOU 
HAVE  RUINED  MY  LIFE— YOU  MUST  DIE  ^^— FIRED 
THREE  TIMES  — TW^O  SHOTS  CAI\SED  DEATH  ALMOST 
INSTANTLY  — PANIC  IN  AUDIENCE  AND  ON  STAGE  — 
BEAUTIFUL    W^IFE    EMBRACED    SLAYER  — THE    ARREST. 

The  killing  of  Stanford  White  by  Harry  Kendall 
Thaw,  on  the  roof  garden  of  ^ladison  Square,  New 
York,  June  25th,  1906,— just  fourteen  months  after 
the  marriage — startled  the  world.  Millionaires  both  — 
the  victim  a  famous  architect,  the  slayer  even  more 
fajtious— the  love  of  a  beautiful  woman  the  cause  of 
the  crime— is  it  any  wonder  the  Thaw  killing  was  the 
greatest  sensation  in  years?  It  took  place  just  as  th(^ 
nmsical  show,  "Mamselle  Champagne,"  was  com- 
ing to  a  close. 

There  was  a  l)ig  crowd  on  the  roof  of  the  garden  ; 
a  crowd  which  pretty  Avell  filled  the  floor.  Many  peo- 
ple noticed  a  slightly  ])uilt  young  man  walking  back- 
ward and  forward  in  front  of  the  stage,  among  th(* 
•tables  set  here  and  there  in  an  open  space  in  front  Qi 
the  seats. 

28 


STORY  OF  KILLIXG  29 

He  was  plainly  nervous  and  very  pale.  He  kept 
watching'  the  entrance  from  the  Twenty-sixth  street 
side.  A  few  people  knew  it  was  Harry  K.  Thaw  and 
remarked  on  his  peculiar  bevavior.  They  thought  it 
queer  also  that  he  wore  a  long,  thin  coat. 

At  about  11:05  p.  m.  several  persons  noticed  Stan- 
ford White  enter  the  roof  garden  and  take  a  seat  near 
the  left  hand  side  of  the  stage,  pretty  well  up  to  the 
front,  dro[)ping  into  a  chair  at  a  table  four  rows  from 
the  stage. 

Young  Thaw,  who  had  been  watching  apparently 
for  White  to  come  in,  jumped  at  the  sight  of  him  and 
made  for  the  table. 

Few  persons  saw  what  happened  immediately  after- 
ward. In  the  first  place,  the  show  was  nearing  its 
close,  the  dancers  pirouetting  and  skipping  about  the 
stage  and  the  orchestra  jingling  and  clanging  in  gay 
dance  music. 

All  about  the  opc^n  enclosure  in  front  of  the  stage, 
where  the  tables  were  set,  were  palms  and  potted 
jdants,  which  largely  cut  off  the  view  of  the  table 
where  ]\Ir.  White  was  sitting. 

Some  persons  were  sure  that  a  young  woman  was 
at  the  tal)le  when  White  lounged  in  and  took  a  seat. 
They  went  so  far  as  to  describe  her,  saying  she  was 
y()un<r,  slim,  dark-haired  and  dressed  all  in  \vhi1<\ 
with  a  l)ig  white  hat,  from  which  a  filmy  veil  fell  over 
her  shoulders. 

Othei-s  who  insisted  that  they  observed  White  whrn 


30       THE  GREAT  THA^Y  CASE 

he  took  a  seat  there,  said  no  woman  was  present.  They 
were  positive  on  that  point. 

On  reaching  White's  table  Thaw  backed  oft*  a  step 
or  two,  produced  a  revolver,  aimed  it  at  White  and 
pulled  the  trigger.  The  first  bullet  entered  the  right 
eye,  penetrating  the  brain.  Thaw  shot  twice  more, 
rapidly.  The  other  bullets  both  struck  White's  body, 
one  in  the  right  side  of  the  upper  lip  and  the  other  in 
the  right  arm. 

AVhite  hardly  moved  from  his  position  at  the  tabic. 
His  body  sagged  a  little  to  the  left,  his  arm  flattened 
out  on  the  table  top  and  his  head  sank  heavily  on  the 
arm. 

Above  the  swing  and  thrumming  of  the  orchestra 
and  the  gay  chorus  of  the  dancers  the  three  shots 
sounded  clearly,  startling  everybody,  causing  the  njen 
to  jump  to  their  feet  and  rush  toward  the  left  side  of 
the  stage. 

Two  women  nearby,  seeing  what  had  happened  and 
the  l)l()od  flowing  from  the  man's  wounds,  screamed. 
Two  of  the  girls  on  the  stage  fled  screaming  into  the 
Avings. 

' 'Get  back  into  your  line,"  roared  the  stage  manager 
so  that  all  heard  him. 

One  of  the  girls  started  back,  but  she  again  fled  to 
the  wings,  while  two  of  the  remaining  four,  seeing  the 
cause  of  the  trouble,  fell  over  in  a  faint. 

Th(>  music  and  the  dancing  kept  going  a  while  feeb- 
Jy;  then  it  died  away.     The  nuisicians  jumped  from 


MAZIE    FOLLETTE 
Actress  named  in  the  case. 


STORY  OF  KILTAN(}  33 

the  pit  and  joined  the  crowd.  The  frightened  chorus 
oirls  ran  back  on  the  stage. 

The  employes  of  the  roof  garden  thought  for  a  time 
that  the  shots  came  from  the  stage.  Manager  Law- 
rence had  been  intending  to  introduce  some  revolver 
sliooting  in  the  duel  scene  where  the  line  occurs,  'M 
challenge  you,  I  challenge  you  to  a  du-u-el, "  and  the 
stage  hands  and  other  hangers  on  at  the  garden 
til  ought  the  innovation  had  been  put  on  a  night  or 
two  ahead  of  schedule. 

They  quickly  found  out  their  mistake,  and  had 
tlicir  hands  full  in  a  minute  or  two  handling  the  peo- 
ple, who  were  pushing  right  and  left,  the  women 
s:'r(Himiiig  to  be  let  out. 

During  all  the  confusion  and  excitement  nobody 
made  any  effort  to  stop  young  Thaw.  He  looked  at 
AVhite's  body,  and  then,  still  holding  his  revolver, 
walked  leisurely  to  a  clump  of  potted  plants  and  back 
toward  the  elevator.  Fireman  Brudi  saw  a  part  of 
what  had  happened,  saw  Thaw  shoot  White,  and  knew 
who  the  young  man  was  that  was  walking  away  with 
the  revolver. 

Brudi  went  up  to  him  and  caught  him  by  the 
shoulder.  Thaw  smiled  at  him  and  made  no  resis- 
tance when  Brudi  told  him  he  would  have  to  wait 
until  the  police  came.  He  was  very  pale,  but  otlun'- 
wis.'  eool  and  collected. 

Brudi  held  Thaw  lightly,  while  the  crowd  gathered 
arcjund.      It   was   a   wait   of   several   minutes   bi^fore 


34  THE  GEE  AT  THAW  CASE 

Policeman  Debes  of  the  Tenderloin  station,  appeared 
and  took  charge  of  Thaw.  Debes  telephoned  to  his 
station  honse  for  the  reserves  to  handle  the  crowd  and 
the  desk  sergeant  sent  ten  policemen.  Debes  wj^s 
waiting  for  the  elevator  to  take  Thaw  to  the  police 
station. 

Just  before  the  elevator  started,  a  slender,  dai-k, 
pretty  young  woman,  the  same  one  with  whom  Thaw 
liad  been  sitting  before  he  sauntered  away  on  his  er- 
I'and  of  death,  came  running  into  the  car.  She  threw 
li(^r  arms  around  the  prisoner  and  kissed  him. 

"Oh,  Harry.''  she  cried.  "Why  did  you  do  it, 
Harry?" 

"It's  all  right,  dear  wife,"  h^^  answered,  kissing  her. 
'  ^  He  ruined  you,  and  I  fixed  him.    It 's  all  right. ' ' 

All  this  time  the  audience  was  terror  stricken. 

"Sing,  you  girls.  Sing.  For  God's  sake  keep  on,'' 
shouted  the  manager. 

The  girLs  sang.  They  danced  as  the  silent  form 
lay  prostrate.  Their  faces  were  white.  But  they 
were  on  the  stage  and  they  quelled  their  emotion. 

A  man  who  sat  at  a  table  behind  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Thaw,  told  the  following  story  of  the  tragedy : 

"I  noticed  Harry  Thaw  and  his  wife  when  thi\v 
came  in.  Thaw  seemed  to  have  been  drinking  and 
was  very  restless.  He  got  up  from  the  table  sevei-nl 
times  and,  leaving  his  Avife,  walked  back  toward  llie 
elevators.  They  were  sitting  at  the  Twenty-sixth 
street  side  of  the  house. 


STOEY  OF  KILLING  35 

''At  10  :30  Stanford  White  came  in  and  took  a  seat 
at  a  table  about  five  tables  in  front  of  the  Thaws. 
He  talked  a  while  to  Harry  Stevens  and  then  sat 
alone  watching  the  show  and  resting  his  head  on  his 
right  hand. 

"As  he  walked  down  the  aisle,  Harry  Thaw  noticed 
him  and  got  up  from  his  seat.  While  White  was  talk- 
ing to  Stevens,  Thaw  walked  over  and  stood  behind 
some  artificial  shrubbery  just  a  few  feet  away  from 
them. 

"When  Stevens  left,  Thaw  walked  deliberately 
down  the  aisle  and  stood  for  a  minute  behind  White. 
He  pulled  a  revolver  from  his  pocket  and  fired  three 
shots.  I  think  the  first  missed,  but  the  other  two  took 
effect,  and  White  rolled  to  the  floor,  upsetting  the 
chair. ' ' 

With  Thaw  safely  lodged  in  a  police  station  cell, 
one  of  the  greatest  trials  of  a  century  faced  the  pub- 
lic. The  inexorable  hand  of  the  law  began  its  work 
the  next  day  after  the  arrest,  when  Thaw  was  taken 
from  his  cell  in  the  Tenderloin  police  station,  photo- 
graphed and  measured  by  the  Bertillon  system,  like 
a  burglar  or  holdup  man,  arraigned  in  police  court  and 
held  without  bail.  Perfectly  calm.  Thaw  went  through 
the  hurried  formalities  in  court,  absolutely  refusing 
to  make  any  extended  statement  regarding  the  trag- 
edy. 

The  policeman  who  arrested  Thaw,  gave  this  ac- 
count of  the  shooting  in  the  police  court  hearing. 


36       THE  GREAT  THA^Y  CASE 

"I  found  the  people  almost  crazy,  trying  to  get  out 
of  the  place.  I  jumped  into  the  mob  and  saw  a  woman 
lying  down.     She  had  fainted,  and  then  I  saw  White. 

"I  said  to  Thaw :  'Did  you  do  it?'  and  he  replied  : 
'Yes,  I  did  it.  That  man  ruined  mv  life  or  wife.' 
I  don't  know  \vhich  he  said,  hut  it  sounded  like  that. 
Then  he  went  on  saying :  '  That  man  ruined  my  home. 
I  guess  he  won't  ruin  smy  more  homes.  Is  he  dead?' 
I  told  him  he  was,  and  he  said  he  was  glad  of  it,  and  he 
was  glad  he  'made  a  good  job  of  it.' 

"When  I  arrested  Thaw,  a  woman,  who  Manager 
Lawrence  told  me  was  Mrs.  Thaw,  rushed  up  to  Thaw 
and  kissed  him,  and  said:  'I  did  not  think  you'd  do 
it  in  that  way!'  'It's  all  right,  it's  all  right,'  Thaw 
told  her.  Then  she  whispered  something  into  his  ear. 
I  don't  know  what  she  said  to  him." 

"Down  in  the  hall  and  in  the  street  a  lot  of  women 
gathered  about  us  and  shook  hands  with  Thaw  and 
sympathized  with  him.  'Why  did  you  do  it?  Why 
did  you  do  it  ?  they  kept  asking. ' ' 

A  statement  credited  to  Thaw  immediately  after  th.' 
arrest  is  this :  -  . 

"We  were  all  at  a  party  in  Martin's.  You  can  find 
out  the  names  of  the  others  there,  Init  I  was  sitting 
some  distance  from  my  wife.  Suddenly  I  saw  her 
grow  pale  and  begin  to  shiver,  and  I  thought  she  was 
ill. 

I  made  a  motion  to  incpiire  what  was  the  matter 


( ( 


STORY  OF  KILLING  37 

and  she  called  a  waiter  and  wrote  a  note  whicji  she 
sent  around  the  table  to  me. 

"The  note  said  'The  dirty  blackguard  is  here,' 
Then  I  turned  and  saw  that  fat  scoundrel  sitting  there, 
})ig  and  healthy,  and  then  I  saw  her  and  how  she 
was. ' ' 

"Did  White  make  any  motion  to  attack  youf"  was 
asked  of  Thaw, 

"What?"  said  Thaw, 

The  question  was  repeated. 

Thaw  nodded  his  head  in  the  affirmative. 

From  his  pocket  when  he  was  searched  there  was 
taken  a  leather  revolver  shield  such  as  policemen  car,- 
ry  their  weapons  in.  He  had  $168  in  cash  and  several 
olank  checks,  besides  a  gold  cigarette  case. 

'i'haw  did  not  display  the  least  anxiety  about  his 
own  welfare  nor  about  the  effects  of  his  shots.  Tie 
never  asked  a  question  nbout  White.  lie  did  not  ask 
any  fjuestions  of  th^  police  at  all.  He  seemed  as  un- 
concerned as  if  bailing  out  a  chauffeur  instead  of  fac- 
in</  an  accusation  of  killing  a  man. 

As  he  talked  with  a  reporter  he  reverted  again  and 
again  to  liis  wife's  attack  of  shivering  when  she  saw 
White  in  Martin's, 

"That  poor,  delicate  little  thin.g,  all  nervous  and 
shaking  like  a  reed,"  he  said,  half  to  himself.  "And 
there  he  was,  the  big  healthy  scoundrel.     Ood!" 

While  the  coroner's  proceedings  were  in  progress 
in  the  city  next  day,  the  final  scene  of  the  tragedy  as 


38  THE  GEE  AT  THAW  CASE 

affecting  White  was  carried  out  on  Long  Island.  At 
St.  James'  the  funeral  of  the  dead  architect  was  held. 

Friends  and  relatives  of  White  left  for  the  little 
town  early  to  attend  the  ceremony.  By  the  time  they 
returned  the  grand  jury  had  indicted  the  man  who 
brought  White's  career  to  a  close  and  the  coroner's 
jury  had  held  him,  completing  the  legal  formalities 
preceding  the  trial  itself. 

Thaw  was  restless  in  his  cell  in  the  Tombs  from  the 
time  he  entered  it  until  he  was  arraigned.  His  wife 
visited  him  every  time  the  rules  of  the  prison  allowed, 
and  remained  at  his  side  as  long  as  possible  each  time. 
His  mother,  an  aged,  feeble  woman,  also  went  to  New 
York  to  comfort  her  offspring  in  his  hour  of  trouble, 
and  the  Countess  of  Yarmouth,  his  sister,  was  among 
the  visitors.  Other  visitors — unwelcome  ones— were 
the  alienists  whom  the  state  and  the  defense  sent  to 
examine  the  young  man.  Thaw  fought  the  insanity 
plea  vigorously,  and  at  times  almost  fought  the  ex- 
perts. Finally,  however,  he  allowed  the  examinations 
into  his  mental  condition. 


STANFORD   WHITE 


CHAPTER     IV. 

Stanford  White,  Creator  and  Destroyer. 

LIFE  OF  HARRY  K.  THAW  ^S  VICTIM  — HIS  DEATH  RE- 
FLECTED HIS  STRANGE  LIFE— A  MENTAL  GIANT  WHO 
TURNED  FROM  LOFTY  ENTERPRISES  TO  VICIOUS  REVELS 
—BUILT  MADISON  SQUARE  GxVRDEN— THE  STUDIO  IN 
THE  TOWER  — MIGHTY  WORKS  THAT  SURVIVE  WHITE 
AS  MONUMENTS  TO  HIS  GENIUS— THE  TRAGIC  '^GIRL 
IN  THE  pie''  AFFAIR— white's  HOME  EXISTENCE — 
HIS  END. 

Stanford  White's  death  was  no  more  remarkal)le 
than  the  strange  life  he  led.  Few  expressed  sur- 
I)fise  that  the  end  came  as  it  did.  On  the  other 
hand,  those  who  knew  him  best  asserted  they  would 
liave  experienced  a  sensation  little  short  of  amaze- 
ment had  White  departed  this  life  as  most  men,  sur- 
rounded by  members  of  his  family  and  enjoying  the 
ministrations  of  physician,  nurse  and  spiritual  ad- 
'visor. 

Some  saw  in  the  pyrotechnic,  picturesque,  sensa- 
tional climax  of  his  existence,  the  fulfillment  of  a 
prophesy  oft  reiterated  by  his  closest  acquaintances. 

The  unusual,  the  unexpected  ruled  the  existence  of 
this  man  of  wonderful  brain  and  creative  genius.  A 
^iant  in  mental  force  and  power,  he  could  turn 
lightly  from  some  vast  enterprise  to  a  revel  passing 

41 


42  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

all  belief,  haviug  as  its  only  purpose  the  snaring  of 
some  young  girl  — as  Evelyn  Nesbit  was  enmeshed. 
And  he  could  turn,  quite  as  lightly  from  the  an- 
guished cry  of  his  victim  and  forget  her  in  the  mul- 
tiplicity of  details  surrounding  his  huge  undertak- 
ings. 

What  a  mind  was  this — at  once  an  engine  of  crea- 
tion and  destruction,  accepting  the  consequences  in 
each  instance  as  a  matter  of  course.  In  view  of  the 
peculiarities  of  the  man,  it  cannot  be  counted  strange 
that  he  fell  before  the  hand  of  the  avenger  in  the 
temple  he  had  builded  to  mirth,  for  the  famed  ]Madi- 
son  Square  Garden  was  a  creation  of  his  mind. 

In  the  tower  he  had  raised  above  it,  overlooking  the 
great  Metropolis  with  all  its  joys,  sorrows,  struggles, 
its  mighty  forces  that  work  for  good  and  its  un- 
counted army  battling  for  sin,  Stanford  White  had 
fitted  out  a  den  of  Oriental  magnificence  wherein  he 
could  accomplish  his  purposes,  far  removed  from  the 
world  at  large. 

It  was  here  his  wildest  orgies  were  held.  It  was 
from  the  tower-chamber  his  young  victims  went  forth 
to  lives  of  bitterness  and  shame,  and  within  the 
shadow  of  that  tower  White  was  whirled  to  eternity 
without  a  moment's  respite  to  atone  for  his  sins  or 
l)repare  for  an  accounting  before  the  final  tribimal 
where  truth  and  not  pretense  avails.  Whatever  his 
offenses,  his  punishment  was  heavy,  indeed. 

Great  as  an  architect,  a  lover  of  beauty  in  his  work 


STANFORD  WHITE  43 

and  in  his  play,  a  charniing  companion,  a  man  of 
kindliness,  possessed  of  many  talents,  a  lover  of  all 
the  pleasant  things  of  life,  but  not  bound  by  scruples 
or  the  dictates  of  morality — such  was  White.  Within 
two  days  after  his  death,  New  York  rang  with  stories 
of  strange  debauches  in  which  White  had  played  the 
part  of  host  or  one  of  the  hosts.  Anthony  Comstock 
declared  that  he  had  tried  to  obtain  evidence  whicli 
would  suffice  to  bring  action  against  White  for  vari- 
ous alleged  excesses.  When  White  fell  to  the  floor 
of  ]Madison  S(iuare  Roof  Garden,  in  short,  his  per- 
sonal reputation  fell  with  hijii. 

As  an  architect,  he  was  admittedly  a  genius,  and 
he  left  an  impress  upon  the  architecture  of  this  coun- 
try which  will  remain.  He  transformed  the  old,  un- 
sightly Harlem  Railroad  freight  station  into  Madison 
S^iuare  Garden— one  of  the  most  beautiful  edifices  in 
New  York.  He  aided  in  the  designing  of  Trinity 
Church  in  Boston. 

Among  his  famous  works  in  New  York  Avere  the 
Hall  of  Fame  at  New  York  University,  the  Washing- 
ton arch,  the  Century,  University  and  Metropolitan 
clubs,  the  William  C.  Whitney  residence  and  the  ped- 
estal of  the  Farragut  monument  in  Madison  Square. 

He  was  the  son  of  Richard  Grant  White,  the  nov- 
elist and  journalist,  and  was  born  in  1853.  After 
])eing  graduated  from  New  York  I'niversity  he  went 
to  Europe  to  study  architecture.  He  returned  in 
1881   and  entered  into  partnersliip   with  Charles  F. 


44      TEE  GREAT  THA^y  CASE 

McKim  and  William  R.  Meade.  The  firm  of  ]\IcKim, 
^leade  &  White,  largely  through  the  genius  of  White, 
])eeame  one  of  the  most  prominent  in  the  profession. 

^Ir.  White  was  essentially  a  clubman,  being  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Knickerbocker,  Ihiion,  University,  Auto- 
mobile, Metropolitan,  Players',  Lambs'  and  New 
Vork  Yacht  clubs.  He  was  a  follower  of  the  stag(\ 
a  devout  first-nighter,  and  had  an  extensive  acquaint- 
ance among  theatrical  people. 

White's  studio  apartment  in  ]\Iadison  Square  tower 
was  one  of  the  most  noted  centers  of  revelry  in  the 
city.  He  used  his  studio  in  a  professional  way  to 
I)aint  in  water  colors  and  to  work  out  architectural 
designs  in  matters  that  were  separate  from  the  firm 
work  of  ]\rcKim,  Meade  &  White,  but  the  chief  use 
of  the  rooms  w^a.s  as  a  meeting  place  for  gathei'ings 
of  theatrical  and  other  folk  to  whom  night  life  was 
attractive. 

The  rooms  were  decorated  with  things  that  Whitc^ 
had  gathered  in  his  frequent  trips  to  Europe.  The 
draperies  and  rugs,  the  furniture  and  adornments 
were  of  the  florid  style  of  three  centuries  ago  that  pre- 
vailed in  Italy  and  France.  His  tastes  ran  to  deco- 
rati(m  (piite  as  much  as  to  architecture,  and  his  ai)art- 
ments  in  the  tower  rQvealeci  the  artistic  side  of  the 
man  more  than  any  of  his  purely  professional  achieve- 
ments. 

His  acquaintance  among  stage  foiK  ran  not  so  much 
to  those  who  were  regarded  as  the  leaders  in  their 


HATTIE    FORSVTIIE 
Chorus  girl,  once  a  friend  of  Mrs,  Thaw. 


...J 


STAXFOED  WHITE  47 

profession  as  to  those  who  were  willing  to  ''make  a 
night  of  it."  And  it  was  from  these  "all  nighters" 
that  ^Fr.  White  drew  the  material  for  the  "studio 
parties"  that  at  one  time  brought  notoriety  to  the 
^ladison  Square  Garden  tower. 

In  the  field  of  decoration,  White  had  established 
a  place  for  himself  unlike  that  of  any  architect.  He 
was  accustomed  to  make  trips  to  Europe  to  secure 
collections  of  various  kinds.  He  would  get  materials 
for  a  Francis  I.  room  or  a  Louis  XVI.  room,  bring 
them  home,  and  store  them  to  be  sold  later  to  some 
rich  man  who  was  looking  for  fads  in  household 
decorations.  Sometimes  he  would  collect  windows 
and  doors.  At  other  times  he  would  scour  France 
and  Italy  for  hangings  and  draperies. 

After  the  tragedy  there  was  great  diversity  of 
opinion  in  the  architectural  world  as  to  White's 
standing  as  an  architect.  Some  of  the  architects  did 
not  hesitate  to  say  that  he  was  the  greatest  in  the 
profession  in  his  country  since  11.  H.  Richardson. 
Others  asserted  that  he  shone  largely  by  the  reflected 
light  of  his  partners,  McKim  and  Mead.  It  is  cerlaiii 
that  no  architect  was  called  upon  oftener  to  serve  on 
juries  to  pass  upon  the  mt^rits  of  designs  for  the  great 
buildings  of  the  country  thin  White. 

Those  who  decried  his  abilities  said  that  mucli  of 
the  work  ascribed  to  White  was  really  the  work  of 
^FeKim  or  ]\Iead.  Their  tastes  ran  to  the  severely 
classic  designs  and  to  what  is  known  as  the  fi<'l<i  of 


48  THE  GEE  AT  THA^Y  CASE 

pure  architecture.  It  was  declared  tliat  White,  a 
disciph^  of  the  French  and  Italian  schools,  could  not 
have  designed  many  of  the  buildings  for  which  he  got 
credit  as  a  member  of  the  firm  of  ]McKim,  ^lead  & 
White.     One  architect  said  : 

"The  Boston  Public  library,  the  Columbia  univer- 
sity buildings,  the  Villard  house,  the  agricultural 
building  at  the  Chicago  World's  Fair,  and  other  crea- 
tions of  the  ]\lcKim  firm  were  not  and  could  not  have 
been  designed  by  White.  All  through  them  runs  the 
genius  of  jMr.  McKim.  White  ran  to  the  lighter  style 
of  jirchitecture,  the  florid,  the  modern,  and  not  to  the 
(irecian  or  the  severe  and  monumental  styh^  of  purely 
classic  architecture.    ■ 

"llis  mood  was  that  of  gayety  and  it  expressed 
itself  in  his  designs.  The  bases  of  St.  Gaudens  statues 
lent  themselves  to  his  mood,  and  some  of  his  best  work 
was  done  in  connection  with  them.  lie  was  essen- 
tially an  artist  rather  than  an  architect,  and  his  in- 
fluence in  his  Arm  was  along  the  lines  of  the  artistic 
rather  than  along  the  strict  standards  of  architec- 
tural expression." 

There  were  current  also  numeroiLS  stories  regard- 
ing White's  private  life  that  were  not  of  the  credit- 
able kind.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  he  was  fre- 
(inently  under  suspicion,  l)ut  there  was  always  some- 
thing lacking  in  a  legal  way  so  that  no  open  scandal 
attached  to  his  name,  althongh  evil  repoi'ts  were  fi'c- 
([uent.    \o  action  was  taken  by  the  investigators,  how- 


STAXFOED  WHITE  49 

ever,  because  of  lack  of  tangible  evidence. 

One  incident  that  contributed  much  to  AVhite's 
bad  reputation  and  which  illustrates  forcibly  his  view 
of  a  "good  time"  was  the  "Girl-in-a-Pie"  affair, 
which  was  later  to  come  out  in  evidence  at  the  trial. 

The  famed  "Girl-in-the-Pie"  dinner  was  given  to 
several  artists  and  men  about  town,  with  several  noto- 
rious ''fashionable"  women  in  attendance.  The 
spread  cost  $350  a  plate. 

At  the   approach  of   dawn,   four  negroes   entered. 

bearing  a  huge  pie,  which  they  placed  on  the  table. 

A  faint  stir  was  observed  beneath  the  crust  just  as 

the  orchestra  struck  up  the  air  of  the  nursery  jingle: 

"Sing  a  song  of  sixpence,  a  pocket  full  of  rye, 

Four-and-twenty  blackbirds  baked  in  a  pie." 

The  pie  was  burst  asunder,  and  from  inside  there 
emerged  the  beautiful  figure  of  a  young  girl,  clad  in 
black  gauze  draperies.  She  turned  her  pretty  child- 
ish face  upon  the  astonished  guests,  and  poised  as  a 
bird  about  to  fly,  while  two  dozen  golden  canaries, 
released  by  her  hand,  flew  about  the  room. 

Then,  when  the  tableau  was  complete,  a  man  forced 
his  way  to  the  side  of  the  table  and  with  a  smih'  as- 
sisted the  child  to  the  floor.  The  man  was  Stanford 
White. 

The  young  girl,  a  model,  then  15  years  old,  lived 
with  her  mother,  but  on  the  night  of  the  banquet  she 
(lisappv^ared,  and  I'emained  in  hiding  foi-  two  years. 
Efforts  of  the  police  to  And  her  were  unsuccessful. 


50  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

At  last  she  returned,  to  tell  a  story  of  revolting 
mistreatment  and  desertion  by  the  man  who  met  his 
dt^ath  at  the  hands  of  Harry  Thaw. 

"When  I  was  lifted  from  the  pie  to  a  seat  at  the 
table  I  found  myself  queen  of  the  revel,"  she  said. 
"It  was  dazzling  at  first,"  she  said,  "but  in  the  end 
it  became  a  sad  queendom. 

"Mr.  White  was  kind  for  a  time,  but  when  he  went 
to  Europe  he  instructed  his  clerks  to  get  rid  of  me 
with  as  little  trouble  as  possible.  I  never  saw  him 
again." 

Turned  into  the  street  to  live  as  she  might,  this 
girl,  not  yet  18,  finally  married,  but  her  husband, 
when  he  learned  of  her  part  in  the  "pie"  banquet, 
brooded  over  the  affair,  and  deserted  his  girl  wife 
without  attempting  to  avenge  her  wrongs.  She  died 
soon  afterward. 

Stanford  White  was  as  respectful  to  women  of  the 
stage  who  demanded  respect  as  he  was  to  his  wife's 
friends. 

lie  was  one  of  a  group  of  men,  old  and  young, 
who  are  oftenest  seen  in  and  near  theaters  where 
frothy  nonsense  charmingly  unclad  is  enacted  and  in 
restaurants  where  musical  comediennes  tempt  their 
dainty  appetites  with  broiled  lobster. 

He  knew  many  theatrical  managers,  and  some  of 
them  often  invited  him  behind  the  scenes— but  not 
to  inspect  the  architecture. 

Stanford   Whiti'   was  indefatigable   in  his  pursuit 


STAXFOPiD  ^YHITE  51 

of  beauty  in  his  work  and  in  his  play.  He  was  gen- 
erous and  considerate.  He  would  hide  a  $100  bill 
in  a  bouquet  he  ordered  handed  over  the  footlights; 
he  would  visit  a  poor,  sick  chorus  girl  when  she 
thought  herself  friendless  in  a  hospital. 

Once  in  a  while,  ]\Ir.  White  gave  entertainments 
in  the  tower,  at  which  the  women  and  men  of  society 
were  his  guests.  But  there  were  other  entertainments 
on  which  Venus,  not  Diana,  should  have  looked  down. 
At  them,  if  a  girl  danced  on  the  table  she  did  not 
scratch  the  mahogany.  Stanford  AA^iite  vastly  ad- 
mired adolescence.  His  death  was  a  tragedy  and  is 
a  warning.  His  last  night  was  U^ical  of  his  method 
of  life. 

He  dined  with  his  son ;  he  went  to  his  club.  From 
his  nearest  kin  and  his  honorable  friends  he  turned 
to  the  structure  his  genius  had  raised,  where  was  hid 
his  "studio."  The  lights  and  music  of  the  roof 
garden  enticed  him.  And  in  the  presence  of  the 
woman  who  vows  he  ruined  her  life  he  perished  by 
her  husband's  hand.  And  the  last  jangle  that 
sounded  to  him  was  a  comedy  song:  "I  could  love 
a  million  girls." 

IMadison  Square  garden,  which  he  created  and 
where  he  met  his  death,  was  known  as  his  "pleasure 
house.  *  * 

What  an  awful  warning,  to  the  would-b(^-young- 
man-about-town !  With  all  his  subtle^  experience, 
with  his  fawning  servants  and  paid  detectives,  even 


52 


TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 


Stanford  White  with  his  millions  could  not  avert  the 
hand  of  vengeance.  "Be  sure  your  sin  will  find  you 
out."  Sooner  or  later  a  settlement  must  be  made. 
Lucky  is  he  whose  balance  is  on  the  right  side  of  the 


ledger. 


THE  BIRTHPLACE  OF  EVELYN   NES13IT   TUAW   AT  TAllENTUM,  I'A. 


CHAPTER     V. 
Greatest  Legal  Battle  of  Age  Opens. 

OPPOSING  COUNSEL  HESITATE  TO  SHOW  THEIR  HANDS  IX 
DESPERATE  GAME  OF  LIFE  OR  DEATH— ATTORNEY  GAR- 
VAN 'S  BRIEF  OPENING  ARGUMENT  FOR  PROSECUTION 
FOLLOWED  BY  PRESENTATION  OF  STATERS  CASE  IN  LESS 
THAN  TWO  IIOI'RS— VICTIM  ^S  SON  CALLED  TO  STAND- 
FATAL  BULLETS  GRUESOME  EXHIBIT— STORY  OF  THE 
ROOF  GARDEN"  TRAGEDY  TOLD  — DEFENSE  OPENED  WITH 
PLEA  THAT  THAW  BELIEVED  HE  WAS  ACTING  UPON  THE 
COMMAND  OF  PROVIDENCE  WHEN  HE  SLEW  WHITE  — 
ALIi  IN  READINESS  FOR  GREATEST  SACRIFICE  OF  MODERN 
TIMES. 

ThoiLsands  throughout  Xew  York,  and  in  fact  the 
entire  world,  breathed  in  anxions  suspense  when,  with 
jury  complete  and  all  the  machinery  of  lep^al  battle 
in  readines.s  the  fjreat  trial  opened.  Followina-  delays 
in  securin^^  the  jury— the  excusin<>-  of  several  jurors 
after  their  acceptance  by  both  prosecution  and  de- 
fense—the opening  came  as  a  surprise. 

The  day  will  hmg  be  remembered  because  of  the 
multiplicity  of  surprises  it  broufrht  forth.  Brevity 
of  argument  by  counsel  for  state  and  def(^nse  w^a.s  not 
the  least  of  these.  The  opposinp^  lawyers  felt  they 
were  entering  upon  a  stupendous  game  with  life  and 
death  the  stakes,  and  youth,  beauty,  love,  hate,  treach- 
ery and  millions  factors  in  the  play. 

53 


54  THE  GEE  AT  THA^Y  CASE 

Neither  cared  to  show  his  hand  and  disclose  the 
cards  he  held.  It  was  Monday,  February  4,  1907— 
a  fateful  day,  coming  after  seven  months  and  ten 
days'  imprisonment  for  Thaw  in  the  Tombs. 

The  prosecution  made  a  most  remarkable  record 
when  it  presented  its  opening  statement  in  ten  minutes 
and  followed  it  with  less  than  two  hours  of  testimony, 
closing  in  time  for  the  noon  recess.  The  defense  an- 
nounced it  w^ould  open  its  case  with  a  statement  by  At- 
torney J.  B.  Gleason. 

The  purpose  of  the  prosecution  was  readily  appar- 
ent— throwing  upon  the  defense  the  burden  of  disclos- 
ing its  case,  reserving  the  while  the  state's  hardest 
fire  for  rebuttal  later  when  Thaw's  lawyers  had  ex- 
haiLsted  themselves  and  their  material. 

Opening  shots  of  the  legal  battle  royal  were  fired  by 
Assistant  District  Attorney  Garvin,  of  counsel  for  th;* 
state. 

He  congratulated  the  jurors  on  their  body  having 
been  completed  and  then  outlined  the  purpose  of  the 
law,  which  was  not  seeking  for  vengeance,  but  to  up- 
hold the  security  of  the  state,  h^  said.  He  urged  the 
importance  of  the  case  and  a  strict  observance  of  the 
law  in  order  that  a  verdict,  fair  to  all,  might  be 
reached. 

It  was  the  claim  of  the  people,  he  said,  that  on  the 
night  of  June  25,  1906,  the  defendant  "shot  and  killed 
w^ith  premeditation  and  intent  to  kill"  one  Stanford 
White.     He  then  briefly  outlined  the  movements  of 


ASST.  DISTRTC  r  ATTORNEY  GARVAN 
Sketched  in  court. 


LEGAL  BATTLE  OPEXS  57 

"White,  beginning  with  the  Saturday  preceding  the 
tragedy  and  ending  with  the  actual  scene  of  the  shoot- 
ing on  the  Madison  Square  Roof  garden. 

"The  purpose  of  punishment  of  crime  is  an  example 
to  the  community, ' '  thundered  the  prosecutor. 

"The  defendant  is  charged  with  the  murder  of 
Stanford  White  with  premeditation  on  June  25,  1906. 
]\Ir.  White  was  an  architect,  a  member  of  the  firm  of 
McKim,  Meade  &  White.  On  the  Sunday  before  his 
death  he  went  to  his  home  on  Long  Island  with  his 
family.  He  returned  to  the  city  on  Monday  with  his 
son  and  his  son's  friend  named  King.  They  went  to 
the  Cafe  Martin  for  dinner. 

"Mr.  White  had  previously  purchased  tickets  to  a 
theater.  After  dinner  Mr.  White  drove  his  son  and 
his  son's  friend  to  the  theater  and  then  went  himself 
to  the  Madison  Sriuare  Roof  garden,  where  a  new 
play,  'Mam'zelle  Champagne,'  was  to  be  produced. 

"Stanford  White  went  to  the  Madison  Square  Roof 
garden  and  sat  alone  at  one  of  the  small  tables  there, 
wntching  the  first  production  of  this  play  called 
*  i\Iam  'zelle  Champagne. ' 

"The  defendant  was  there  with  his  wife  and  two 
fi'iends,  Truxton  Beale  and  Thomas  McCaleb.  The 
defendant  walked  constantly  about  the  place. 

"In  the  middle  of  the  seco«id  act  the  defendant's 
pa  rty  started  to  leave  the  roof.  The  defendant  let  his 
pjirty  go  ahead  and  he  lagged  behind.  Passing  the 
table  where  Stanford  AVihte  was  sitting,  this  defen- 


'o; 


58  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

dant  wheeled  suddenly,  faced  Mr.  White,  and  delib- 
erately shot  him  through  the  brain,  the  bullet  entering 
the  eye. 

' '  Mr.  White  was  dead. 

"The  defendant  did  not  know^  this.  He  feared  he 
had  not  completed  his  work,  and  he  fired  again,  the 
bullet  penetrating  White's  cheek.  Still,  to  make  sure, 
he  fired  a  third  time. 

"Mr.  White,  or  rather  the  body  of  Mr.  White, 
tumbled  to  the  floor. 

"The  defendant  turned,  and  facing  the  audience, 
held  his  revolver  aloft  with  the  barrel  upside  down 
to  indicate  that  he  had  completed  what  he  intended 
to  do.  The  big  audience  understood.  There  was  no 
panic." 

Mr.  Garvin  concluded  by  giving  the  details  of 
Thaw's  arrest  and  indictment  by  the  prosecution.  He 
spoke  always  in  a  conversational  tone.  Thaw  sat 
throughout  with  head  downcast  and  face  flushed. 

Calm  and  as  cold  and  easy  of  manner  as  though 
rehearsing  a  scene  in  some  drama  instead  of  a  great 
tragedy  of  life,  District  Attorney  Jereme  recpiested 
the  exclusion  of  all  other  witnesses  and  placed  his  first 
witness  on  the  stand. 

As  Evelyn  Thaw  passed  her  husband  in  leaving  she 
took  his  hand  and  heldjt  for  a  moment,  and,  as  she 
turned  away,  tears  trickled  down  her  cheeks. 

Harry  Thaw  was  visibly  nervous  and  druiuued  on 
the  table  with  h:s  fingers. 


DISTRICT   ATTORNEY  JEROME 
in  opening  address. 


LEGAL  BATTLE  OPENS  61 

Lawrence  White,  the  son  of  the  dead  architect,  was 
the  first  witness.  Thaw  again  fastened  his  eyes  on  the 
table  before  him  and  did  not  once  look  at  the  witness. 

Young-  White  said  he  was  19  years  old  and  a  student 
at  Harvard  university.  His  mother,  he  said,  was  then 
living  at  Cambridge,  Mass. 

White  was  on  the  stand  only  a  few  minutes.  He 
told  of  accompanying  his  father  to  the  Cafe  Martin 
for  dinner,  and  said  that  when  he  left  him  to  go  with 
his  chum,  a  bov  named  Kins'  to  the  New  York  roof 
garden,  it  Avas  the  last  time  he  saw  his  father  alive. 

]\Iyer  Cohen,  a  song  writer  and  manager  of  the 
house  which  i)iiblislied  the  music  of  ''Mam'zelle  Cham- 
pagne," was  called  after  an  elevator  man  had  detailed 
Thaw's  conversation  when  arrested. 

Mr.  Cohen  was  on  the  iMadison  Square  Roof  garden 
the  night  of  the  traged}".  He  saw  Thaw  there  for  the 
first  time  during  the  initial  act  of  the  musical  comedy. 
Cohen  described  on  a  diagram  the  position  of  the  table 
at  wiiich  White  sat. 

When  asked  by  ]\Ir.  Garvan  to  indicate  Thaw's  man- 
ner of  approaching  the  architect  that  evening,  the 
witness  left  the  stand,  and,  walking  up  and  down  be- 
foi-c  the  jury  box,  he  illustrated  the  slow  pace  which 
lu'  declared  chai-acterizecl  Thaw's  deliberation  in  ap- 
proaching his  victim. 

"He  walked  up  to  Mr.  White's  table  like  this,"  said 
the  witness,  indicating.     "He  nuide  a  slight  dotour, 


62  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

and  coming'  up  to  Mr.  White  from  behind  suddenly 
faced  him  and  fired  three  times." 

Henry  S.  Plaese,  superintendent  of  the  publishing 
company  that  own,ed  the  rights  of  "Mam'zelle  Cham- 
paigne, ' '  was  the  next  witness.  He  saw  the  defendant 
the  night  of  the  killing  in  the  rear  of  the  roof  garden., 
opposite  the  center  aisle.  Mr.  Plaese  was  standing 
with  ]\Ir.  Cohen,  the  previous  witness.  Thaw  stood 
before  them  for  six  or  seven  minutes,  looking  to  the 
right  and  kft. 

After  the  first  act  he  next  saw  Thaw  just  previous 
to  the  shooting.  White  was  seated,  facing  the  stage, 
his  head  leaning  on  his  right  hand.  There  was  no 
conversation  when  Thaw  approached  White,  and  the 
former  immediately  began  firing. 

Thaw  then  retreated  toward  the  rear  of  the  garden, 
with  his  right  hand  elevated,  "the  barrel  of  the  pistol 
being,  pointed  upward. ' ' 

The  weapon  with  which  White  was  killed  was 
brought  into  the  case  during  the  testimony  of  Paul 
Brudi,  the  fireman  who  disarmed  Thaw  after  the  fatal 
shots  were  fired.  Brudi,  who  appeared  on  the  stand 
in  uniform,  identified  the  pistol  when  it  was  shown  to 
him,  and  said  that  after  taking  it  from  the  prisoner 
he  turned  it  over  to  the  police. 

"I  remember  hearing  only  two  shots,"  said  Brudi 
in  relating  the  events  of  the  evening  of  the  tragedy, 
"when  I  rushed  up  and  grabbed  the  prisoner,  who 
had  his  arms  uplifted." 


LEGAL  BATTLE  OPENS  63 


( ( ' 


Did  you  hear  the  defendant  say  an}1:hing  after 
the  shooting?"  asked  Assistant  District  Attorney  Gar- 
van. 

"Yes/'  the  witness  replied,  *'he  said  ^He  ruined 
my  wife/  " 

"Did  he  sav  anvthino-  else?" 

"No." 

"Did  3^ou  hear  any  one  say  anything  to  him?" 

"His  wife." 

"What  did  she  say?" 

"Look  at  the  fix  you  are  in." 

"Did  he  reply?" 

"I  did  not  hear  him  say  anythinfr  else." 

Edward  H.  Convey,  foreman,  of  laborers  at  Madison 
Square  garden,  was  called  to  further  identify  the 
l)istol  Brudi  took  from  Thaw,  and  which  Convey 
h<4ped  in  turning  over  to  the  police.  He  was  not 
cross-examined. 

Policeman  A.  L.  Debes,  who  arrested  Thaw,  was 
called.  He  identified  the  pistol,  the  Imllets,  and  empty 
slu41s  introduced  as  exhibit. 

"Did  you  have  any  conversation  with  Tlinw?" 
asked  ^h\  Oarvan. 

"I  did,"  he  replied. 

"T  a.sked  the  prisoner  if  he  had  shot  Stanfoi-d 
AVhite,  and  he  said.  'I  did.'  I  then  asked  him  why  h' 
sliot  him  and  he  said,  'Because  he  ruined  my  wife  - 
or  life.'" 


64  THE  QBE  AT  THAW  CASE 

"You  could  not  distingiush  whether  he  said  wife  or 
life?"  was  asked. 

"No.  Thaw  then  asked  where  we  were  going  and 
I  replied,  *To  the  station  house,'  and  he  said  'All 
]'ight.'  After  this  I  turned  him  over  to  another  officer 
and  went  up  stairs  to  get  witnesses." 

Coroner's  Physician  Timothy  Lehane,  who  pei*- 
formed  the  autopsy  on  Stanford  White's  body,  de- 
scribed the  wounds  made  by  three  pistol  shots. 

The  first  bullet,  he  said,  entered  the  right  eye,  pass- 
ing downward  and  entering  the  brain;  the  second 
entered  on  the  right  side  of  the  upper  lip,  and  the 
third  wound  was  on  the  right  arm,  the  bullet  ranging 
downward  and  passing  out  six  inches  from  the  point 
of  entrance,  making  what  is  commonly  called  a  flesh 
woruid. 

The  witness  then  identified  the  various  bullets  and 
^fr.  Garvan  asked  that  they  be  formally  received  as 
evidence.  The  exhibits  were  passed  across  to  the  table 
of  counsel  foi'  the  defense.  Thaw's  eyes  wandered 
about  from  right  to  left,  but  not  even  a  fleeting 
ghince  was  thrown  in  the  direction  where  the  deadly 
l)ullets  were  being  left. 

Dr.  Lehane  declared  cerebral  hemorrhage,  caus(vl 
by  the  bullet  wounds,  produced  death. 

Dr.  Sylvester  Pechner,  who  was  with  a  party  on  tlu^ 
Af.idison  S(|uar(-  Roof  garden  the  night  of  the  tragedy, 
n  'xt  was  introduced  as  a  witn.ess  foi*  the  prostH'ution. 
'))'.    I\'chner  examined   White  soon   after  he  fell  and 


LEGAL  BATTLE  OPENS  65 

pronounced  him  dead.  The  architect's  death  must 
have  been  instantaneous,  the  witness  declared. 

Dr.  Pechner  said  that  when  his  attention  was  at- 
tracted by  the  firing  of  the  pistol,  he  saw  Thaw  stand- 
ing over  White. 

He  then  saw  the  defendant  "break  his  gun"  and 
pull  out  the  empty  shells,  and  hold  it  aloft.  Just  after 
this  Fireman  Brudi  took  the  man  in  charge. 

Policeman  Debes  was  recalled  and  Mr.  Oarvan 
asked  him:  "Did  you  hear  any  remark  credited  to 
the  defendant's  wife  that  night ?'•* 

"Yes." 

"Where  was  it?" 

"On  the  ground  floor  of  the  Twenty-sixth  slre(^t 
entrance." 

"Wluit  did  she  say?" 

"  'llarr>%  why  did  you  do  it?'  and  he  replied,  'Tl 
v/ill  be  all  right'  " 

This  ended  the  state's  case— all  the  evidence  de- 
pended upon  to  send  the  young  millionaire  to  tht^ 
(^lectric  chair  having  been  presented  in  that  brief  ses- 
si(m.  The  defense  opened  a  little  more  than  an  honr 
later  after  a  brief  recess  for  luncheon. 

"Harry  Thaw  believed  he  was  aeting  upon  the 
command  of  Providcmce  when  he  killed  Stanford 
White,"  thundered  Attorney  Gleason  in  opening  the 
case  of  the  defense. 

Thaw's  insanity  at  the  time  of  the  killing,  Mr. 
Gleason  said,  was  due  to  heredity  and  stress  of  cir- 


66  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

eiimstances.  It  would  also  be  shown,  lie  said,  that  thr 
defendant  had  suffered  from  temporary  or  emotional 
insanity  for  years. 

"You  must  disabuse  your  minds,  gentlemen  of  the 
jury,"  he  began,  ''of  any  idea  or  impression  that  the 
defense  in  this  case  will  rely  upon  anything  but  the 
constitution  and  the  laws  of  the  imperial  state  of  New 
York.    Upon  these  laws  alone  we  will  rely. 

''Yqu  must  dismiss  all  idea  that  we  are  to  import 
into  this  case  any  so-called  higher  or  unwritten  law. 
We  will  rely  upon  all  the  defenses  that  the  law  al- 
lows. 

"One  of  the  defenses  allowed  by  law  is  that  of  in- 
sanity. ' ' 

Mr.  Gleason  declared  further  that  it  would  be 
shown  that  Thaw  acted  in  self-defense  and  without 
malice,  believing  threats  had  been  made  against  him 
by  Stanford  White.  Mr.  Gleason  said  that  Thaw  did 
not  know  the  nature  or  quality  of  his  act  at  the  time 
he  committed  it. 

The  defendant  killed  Stanford  Wliite,  he  said.  He 
l)elieved  that  it  was  an  act  of  Providence  and  that  he 
was  guided  in  that  act  by  Providence. 

' '  The  defendant  killed  White,  and  he  did  not  know 
that  act  was  wrong.  He  was  suffering  from  a  mental 
unsoundness  proceeded  from  a  disease  so  that  he  did 
not  know  what  he  was  doing.  We  will  show^  that  there 
was  a  numtal  unsoundness  in  his  family. 

"There   will    b(^  Avitnesscs  produced   here  on   both 


LEGAL  BATTLE  OPENS  67 

sides,  but  you  are  the  ones  who  will  judge  of  the  faet 
of  whether  the  defendant  was  insane  or  not  when  he 
killed  Stanford  White. 

"It  lies  with  yon  and  yon  alone  to  decide  whether 
or  not  Thaw  was  sane  Avhen  he  killed  Stanford  White. 
You  must  apply  to  yourselves  the  test  of  your  ability 
to  decide  truly  and  wisely. 

''It  is  for  you  to  reach  out  with  that  human  spirit 
which  says  to  any  man,  no  matter  how  degraded, 
'  look  up  and  be  of  good  cheer.  I,  too,  am  a  man,  and 
would  have  done  the  same  thing  had  I  been  placed  in 
your  position.' 

"When  you  have  heard  all  the  testimony  in  this 
case  and  come  to  judge  this  defendant,  I  am  sure  you 
will  be  of  the  opinion  that  the  defendant's  act  was  due 
to  insanity  and  not  one  of  crime." 

Mr.  Gleason's  address  required  less  than  an  hour. 
At  its  conclusion  the  way  was  clear  for  the  greatest 
defense  of  modern  times  and  the  sacrifice  of  Evelyn 
Thaw-- a  feature  without  a  parallel  in  modern  juris- 
|)rudence. 


CHAPTER     VI. 
"I  Swear  Harry  K.  Thaw  Was  Insane." 

DEFENSE  BEGINS  TERRIFIC  FIGHT  TO  PROVE  YOUNG  MII^ 
LIONAIRE  WAS  CRAZED  BY  WHITENS  ACTS— DR.  WILEY, 
THAW^S  FAMILY  PHYSICIAN,  DECLARES  HARRY  DID  NOT 
REALIZE  WHAT  HE  WAS  DOING— THEATER  EMPI OYE. 
PROVED  IMPORTANT  POINT  THAT  WHITE  HAD  THREAT- 
ENED YOUNG  THAW— ANOTHER  PHYSICIAN  ASSERT- 
ED THE  SLAYER,  WHILE  YOUNG,  HAD  ST.  VITUS  DANCE, 
A  DREAD  MALADY  THAT  MIGHT  HAVE  AFFECTED  HIS 
BRAIN— EVELY:^^  PALE  AND  WORRIED— PRISONER  RAG- 
ING IN  HIS  CELL— THE  CRISIS  AHEAD. 

Experts  on  the  subject  of  insanity— famous  physi- 
cians whose  testimony  cost  from  $100  to  $500  a  day 
each,  and  whose  services  rec^uired  an  expenditure  of 
more  than  a  half  million  dollars— were  the  central 
fifj^ures  in  the  early  part  of  this  cek^brated  trial. 
The  defense  began  by  forging  the  links  in  the  chain 
of  circumstances  which,  it  was  asserted,  had  disordered 
the  brain  of  Harry  Thaw  and  caused  him  to  kill 
White. 

The  first  witness  for  the  defense  was  Dr.  C.  C.  Wiley 
oT  Pittsburg,  the  ThaAVs'  family  jihysician,  who  was 
connected  with  the  Dixmont  Insane  Asylum.  Duriiii: 
Dr.  Wiley's  examination,  the  young  prisoner  sat  with 
paper  and  pencil,  taking  notes  and  consulting  con- 

68 


DELFIIIN    M.    DELMAS 
Thaw's  chief  lawyer. 


SWEARS  THAW  INSANE 


71 


stantly  with  his  counsel.  He  was  pale  and  nervous, 
and  shuddered  at  the  slightest  unusual  noise  in  the 
court  room.  Jerome  went  at  the  witness  pitilessly, 
asked  him  trick  questions,  and  endeavored  a  hundred 
times  to  trap  him  into  an  admission  that  Thaw  might 
not  have  been  insane  at  the  time  he  killed  White. 

Jerome  failed.  AYhen  the  day  had  closed  the  evi- 
dence as  to  insanity  remained  unshaken,  but  the  wit- 
ness was  exhausted  and  so  confused  that  he  often  took 
refuge  in  the  answer  ''I  don't  know,"  or  **I  cannot 
recall." 

Mr.  Gleason,  attorney  for  Thaw,  asked  the  expert 
a  hypothetical  question  the  answer  to  which  immeas- 
urably strengthened  the  plea  that  Thaw  was  insane. 
It  was: 

"Assuming  that  any  man  was  proved  to  you,  as  an 
expert,  to  have  attended  a  roof  garden  the  day  of 
June  25,  1906,  the  occasion  of  the  opening  of  a  theat- 
rical entertainment  which  was  largely  attended,  and 
that  on  walking  out  from  the  theater,  with  his  wife 
near  him,  and  apparently  in  a  quiet  and  orderly  man- 
ner; that  that  man  should  turn  aside  and  fire  three 
shots  from  a  revolver  into  a  man  who  was  sitting  at 
the  table  and  to  whom  he  did  not  speak ;  that  this  man 
then  held  the  pistol  above  his  head  and  walked  quietly 
toward  an  elevator;  that  he  gave  up  the  pistol  without 
resistance  and  did  not  make  any  attempt  to  escape, 
and  that  he  said,  'He  ruined  my  wife,'  and  that  im- 
mediately thereafter  he  said  toliis  wife,  *T  have  prob- 


72  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

ably  saved  your  life/  I  ask  you,  sir,  upon  your  judg- 
ment as  an  expert,  whether  you  are  able  to  give  an 
opinion  touching  on  the  sanity  of  the  man  who  made 
that  answer?'' 

*'I  can,"  said  Dr.  Wiley. 

"Wiil  you  express  that  opinion?"  •"^'      V- 

"I  believe  that  that  man " 

District  Attorney  Jerome  objected. 

"You  must  not  state  a  belief,"  said  Mr.*  Jerome, 
' '  that  is  not  evidence.    You  must  give  an  opinion. ' ' 

"My  opinion,"  said  Dr.  Wiley,  "is  that  the  man 
who  committed  the  act  described  was  suffering  from 
insanity." 

Other  striking  assertion.s  from  Dr.  Wiley's  testi- 
mony were : 

"The  act  of  Harry  K.  Thaw  was  that  of  an  insane 
man. 

' '  The  remark  Thaw  made  to  his  wife  after  the  trag- 
edy, 'I  have  probably  saved  your  life,'  is  an  indication 
of  an  insane  delusion. 

' '  I  have  examined  800  people  as  to  their  sanity,  and 
should  know  the  prisoner's  condition. 

"When  I  examined  Harry  in  the  Tombs  prison  after 
the  murder  his  actions  were  irrational." 

Dr.  Wiley  was  on  the  stand  for  the  defense  all  tlie 
first  day,  and  at  the  opening  of  the  second  day  a  sen- 
sation came  when  Mr.  Delmas  took  the  helm  of  the 
defense,  and  called  Benjamin  Bowman  as  the  second 
witness.    Jerome  had  refused  to  aJlow  Bowman  to  tes- 


COUNTESS  OF  YARMOUTH 
Harry  Thaw's  sister. 


SWEAES  THAW  INSANE 


75 


tify  for  the  state.   Bowman  in  1903  was  a  doorkeeper 
at  the  Madison  Square  Garden  Theater. 

''I  knew  Stanford  White  and  Harry  Thaw,"  Bow- 
man swore.  "A  few  nights  after  Christmas,  1908, 
Stanford  White  came  up  to  me  after  the  show  and 
wanted  to  know  if  Miss  Nesbit  had  gone  home.  I 
told  him  she  had.  He  replied:  'You  are  a  liar.' 
I  tokl  him  to  go  back  (m  the  stage  and  see  for  him- 
self. 

"When  he  returned,  and  as  he  passed  me  he  pulled 
a  pistol  from  his  pocket  and  muttered:  ''I'll  find 
and  kill  that before  daylight.'  " 

"Did  you  tell  Harry  Thaw  of  this  threat  against 
his  life?"  asked  Delmas. 

"Yes,  I  met  him  on  Fifth  avenue  and  told  him  I 
wanted  to  speak  with  him  regarding  Miss  Nesbit.  I 
then  told  him  of  the  incident  at  the  theater  and  of 
White's  threat." 

"What  was  Mr.  White's  condition  when  he  made 
the  threat?" 

"He  was  black  in  the  face  with  anger." 

This  ended  the  direct  examination  of  Bowman,  and 
Justice  Fitzgerald  said: 

"If  there  are  any  persons  in  the  courtroom  whose 
sense  of  propriety  would  be  offended  by  the  testimony 
of  this  witness  the  court  will  give  them  an  opportuni-. 
ty  now  to  withdraw." 

"We  must  ask  the  court  to  bear  with  us  in  bringing 


76  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

out  this  testimony,"  explained  Delmas,  ''but  it  is  es- 
sential. ' ' 

**It  is  perfectly  right  and  proper,"  Justice  Fitz- 
gerald quickly  assured  the  lawyer.  ' '  There  are  ladies 
here,  however,  and  I  think  they  should  be  given  the 
opportunity  to  withdraw  if  they  so  desire." 

The  Countess  of  Yarmouth  and  Mr.s.  Geor^ife  L. 
Carnegie  quickly  left  the  courtroom. 

Mrs.  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw  and  May  McKenzie  ar- 
rived at  the  courthouse  some  time  after  the  session 
had  begun. 

In  cross-examination  by  Mr.  Jerome  the  witness 
clung  to  his  story.  lie  added  that  ''The  Girl  From 
Dixie"  was  playing  at  the  Roof  Garden  Theater  at 
the  time,  and  that  White  and  Thaw  even  then  were 
rivals  for  Miss  Nesbit 's  affections. 

The  next  witness  was  Martin  Green,  a  newspaper 
man,  who  saw  Thaw  just  after  the  shooting.  lie  was 
asked  as  to  Thaw's  manner  after  he  committed  the 
murder. 

**He  held  the  pistol  high  above  his  head,"  said 
Mr.  Green.  'Tie  was  very  pale,  his  eyes  seemed 
a])Out  to  pop  out  of  his  head,  and  his  hair  was  hang- 
ing well  down  on  liis  forehead." 

Dr.  John  Franklin  Bingaman  of  Pittsburg,  on<'  of 
the  Thaw  alienists,  testified  he  had  known  Ilany 
Thaw  for  thirty  years.  lie  attended  him  when  he  was 
two  or  three  yeans  old.  Thaw  had  children's  diseases 
and  St.  Vitus'  dance. 


SWEARS  THAW  INSANE 


77 


Dr.  Bingaman  said  that  Thaw's  condition  might 
be  called  a  neurotic  temperament. 

]\Ir.  Jerome  asked  only  two  (questions  in  cross-ex- 
amination. In  response  to  them  Dr.  Bingaman  said 
Thaw  had  the  St.  Vitus'  dance  when  he  was  six  or 
seven  years  old. 

At  the  end  of  this  day's  hearing  Harry  Thaw  was 
in  a  frenzy.  In  his  cell  he  denounced  his  lawyers  for 
tlieir  determination  to  make  insanity  the  defense 
Adding  to  his  troubles  was  the  fact  that  his  beautiful 
young  wife  was  to  go  on  the  stand  next  day  and  bare 
her  tragic  life  to  the  public  ga7.e. 

Mrs.  Thaw  dreaded  the  ordeal.  She  was  Ijarred 
from  the  court-room  during  the  latter  i)art  of  the 
early  testimony,  but  extra  editions  of  the  newspapers 
were  brought  to  her  hourly,  and  she  read  the  testi- 
mony she  was  not  allowed  to  hear.  She  was  ghastly 
pale,  and  at  times  appeared  about  to  collapse. 

Next  day  brought  the  crisis  in  the  most  sensational 
trial  of  the  twentieth  century,  with  the  fair,  slender 
Evelyn  — the  leader  in  the  battle  to  save  her  hus- 
band's life. 


CHAPTER     VII. 

A  Human  Sacrifice  on  the  Altar  of  Love. 

EVELYN  NESBIT  THAW  BEGINS  STORY  OF  TRAGIC  FATE  AT 
HANDS  OF  STxVNFORD  WHITE— TELLS  OF  SHOOTING— "I 
WILL  BE  brave/'  HER  W^ORDS  TO  HUSBAND  — COL- 
LAPSES ON  STAND— RELATES  HOW  HER  BETRAYAL  DE- 
LAYED HER  MARRIAGE  — thaw's  GREAT  LOVE  RE- 
VEALED—^'l  HAVE  PROBABLY  SAVED  YOUR  LIFE'^  — 
WEPT  WHEN  SHE  DISCLOSED  TO  HARRY  THE  VILLAINY 
OF  WHITE  — BLUSHES  CRI^NISON  ON  THE  STAND— AL- 
MOST FAINTS  WHEN  ORDERED  TO  TELL  OF  HER  DOWN- 
FALL. 

''I  will  be  brave— I  will  be  very  brave,  and  I  know 
that  when  I  am  done,  you  will  go  free.  It  will  be 
hard,  but  I  must  tell  all.  Good-bye,  Harry,  my 
love,  my  own,  my  sweetheart,  husband — " 

These  were  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw's  ^vords  before 
going  on  the  stand. 

Crime,  horrible,  fiendish,  revolting,  startling  in  its 
details,  and  consummated  with  all  the  clever  brutality 
that  a  brilliant  mind  could  encompass— was  laid  up 
against  the  blighted  name  of  Stanford  White  by 
Evelyn  Nesbit  on  the  witness  stand  February  8,  1907. 

Beauty  in  distress— beauty  that  made  a  powerful 
impression  on  .judge,  jury  and  spectators,  intensified 
a    hundredfold    the    dramatic    climax    of    the    trial. 

78 


A  HUMAN  SACRIFICE  79 

Frail,  young,  her  fair  name  shattered,  her  love  for 
husband  surpassing  that  of  Thisbe  for  Pyramus,  she 
laid  down  her  bleeding  heart  upon  the  altar  of  the 
soul,  and  gave  herself  a  living  sacrifice  to  save  her 
husband  from  the  electric  chair. 

In  the  midst  of  her  story  of  her  shame,  the  beauti- 
ful bride  broke  down  and  cried  bitterly.  Restoratives 
were  applied,  and,  fighting  with  the  life  of  her  loved 
one  as  the  stake,  the  piteously  fragile  and  surpassing- 
ly pretty  young  wife  continued  with  the  story  of  her 
ruin  at  the  hands  of  a  modern  Nero,  for  so  she 
painted  White. 

Mrs.  Thaw  was  on  the  stand  two  hours,  and  her 
direct  examination  had  not  been  concluded  when  the 
luncheon  adjournment  was  taken.  As  she  walked 
from  the  witness  chair  along  the  passageway  back  of 
the  jury  box  she  felt  along  the  wall  with  the  finger 
tips  of  her  left  hand  as  if  about  to  faint.  From  scar- 
let her  faced  had  paled  to  the  whiteness  of  a  sheet. 

Except  when  she  broke  down  when  going  into  the 
details  of  her  experience  with  White  the  girl  spoke 
in  a  clear,  soft  voice.  On  the  witness  stand  she  ap- 
peared for  the  first  time  in  court  unveiled,  and  her 
beauty  was  remarked  on  all  sides.  It  is  of  a  girlish 
type,  a  mass  of  dark  hair  framing  a  face  of  daintily 
molded  features. 

"Evelyn  Ne-sbit  Thaw,"  called  the  clerk  in  a  tragic 
voice,  as  soon  as  the  trial  opened  for  what  was  fated 
to  be  its  greatest  day. 


80  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

The  court  room  was  hushed.  Thre^  kundred  news- 
paper workers,  flashing  bulletins  to  every  American 
city,  to  London,  Paris,  and  isles  beyond  the  seas, 
hardl}^  breathed,  leaned  forward  excitedly,  and  the 
crisis  in  the  greatest  legal  battle  ever  fought  was  on ! 

The  familiar  figure  in  blue,  now  for  the  first  time 
without  her  veil,  appeared  from  the  judge's  cham- 
bers. She  stood  near  the  jury  box  as  Clerk  Penny  ad- 
ministered the  oath. 

"I  swear,"  repeated  Mrs.  Thaw  in  an  audible 
voice  at  the  end  of  the  formal  declaration,  which  was 
made  just  a  little  more  impressive  than  usual.  "I 
solemnly  swear  before  the  ever  living  God  to  tell  the 
truth,  the  whole  truth  and  nothing  but  the  trutli!" 

]\rrs.  Thaw  took  her  place  in  the  witness  cliair 
calmly.  She  looked  steadily  ahead  at  Mr.  Delmas 
and  gave  her  answers  to  his  first  questions  in  a  clear 
and  firm  voice,  which  was  soft  in  quality. 

ITarry  Thaw  smiled  at  his  wife  as  she  walked  to 
the  witness  stand,  but  she  apparently  did  not  see  him 
at  the  moment.  After  she  Avas  seated,  however,  she 
smiled  faintly  at  the  prisoner  and  blushed  crimson. 

In  answer  to  Mr.  Delmas'  first  question  Mrs.  Thaw 
said  she  was  born  Dec.  25,  1884.  She  told  of  going 
1()  the  Cafe  Martin  to  dinner  the  evening  of  June  25 
with  her  husband,  Thomas  IMcCaleb,  and  Tinxton 
Bcale. 

''While  you  were  at  the  Cafe  Martin  did  you  see 
Stanford  AVliite?"  asked  Delmas. 


( i  ■ 


A  HU3IAN  SACRIFICE  81 

''Yes,"  answered  Evelyn. 

"At  what  time  did  you  see  him?'* 

''I   don't  know;   it  was  some  time   after  we   ar- 
rived. ' ' 

"Where  did  you  first  see  him?" 

"Coming  in  at  the  Fifth  avenue  entrance." 
HoAv  lont]:  did  you  see  him?" 
I  don't  know.    He  passed  through  and  went  on  to 
the  balcony." 

"While  he  was  on  the  balcony  could  you  see  him?" 

"No." 

"Did  you  see  him  leave?" 

"Yes.    I  saw  him  come  in  from  the  balcony  and  go 
out  of  the  Fifth  avenue  entrance. ' ' 

"While  you  were  in  the  Cafe  Martin,  did  you  call 
for  a  pencil?" 

"Yes." 

"From  whom?" 

"I  think  from  Mr.  ^IcCaleb.     He  said  he  did  not 
have  one." 

]\rrs.  Thaw  said  that  McCaleb  sat  on  her  left,  Beale 
on  her  right,  and  Thaw  was  facing  her. 
Did  you  ask  again  for  a  pencil?" 
Yes,  I  got  one  from  some  one,  I  don't  remember 
whom." 

"Did  you  write  a  note?" 

"I  did." 

"On  what?" 


82  THE  GREAT  TEAW  CASE 


"A  slip  of  paper.     I  think  Mr.  McCaleb  gave  it  to 


me." 


"What  did  you  do  with  itf 

"I  passed  it  to  Mr.  Thaw. 

"What  did  Mr.  Thaw  do?" 

"He  said  to  me:  'Are  you  all  right?'  I  said: 
'Yes.'" 

"What  was  your  condition  as  to  being  disturbed 
or  affected?" 

Mr.  Jerome's  objection  to  the  question. was  sus- 
tained. 

"Was  there  anything  unusual  in  your  manner  that 
was  visible  to  others  ? ' ' 

Again  an  objection  was  sustained. 

"After  this  how  long  did  you  remain?" 

"Only  a  shoi-t  time." 

"Mrs.  Thaw,  have  you  that  slip  of  paper  now?" 

"I  have  not." 

"Have  you  seen  it  since?" 

"No."  " 

"Did  what  you  wrote  refer  to  Stanford  White?" 

Mr.  Jerome  objected  on  the  ground  that  the  note 
itself  v/as  the  best  evidence. 

"After  you  left  the  restaurant,  you  went  to  Madi- 
son Square  Roof  garden?"  asked  Mr.  Delmas. 

"Yes." 

"About  what  time  was  it?" 

"About  th-  middle  of  the  first  act." 

Mrs.   Thaw  said  that  she  sat  in  a  seat  beside  ^h\ 


A  HUMAX  SACBIFICE  83 

Beale  and  Mr.  McCaleb.  Her  husband  went  to  the 
back  of  the  theater;  she  said.  He  was  away  about 
fifteen  minutes,  when  he  returned  and  took  a  seat 
beside  her. 

"How  long  did  he  remain  at  your  side?*' 

' '  About  half  an  hour. ' ' 

"What  was  his  manner  then?" 

"It  seemed  to  be  the  same  as  ever." 

"Did  you  talk  about  anything  special  then?" 

"Xo,  .just  general." 

"Who  suggested  going  away  from  the  garden  1" 

"I  did." 

"The  play  wasn't  interesting  to  you?" 

"Not  a  bit,"  said  the  w^itness. 

"How  did  you  start  when  you  went  out?" 

"I  think  that  Mr.  ]\IcCaleb  and  I  were  in  the  lead 
and  Mr.  Thaw  and  Mr.  Beale  followed." 

"How  far  had  you  gone  when  something  hap^ 
pened?" 

"Almost  to  the  elevator.  I  had  turned  around  to 
speak  to  Mr.  Thaw." 

"How  far  were  you  from  Mr.  White  then?" 

"About  as  far  as  the  end  of  the  .jury  box." 

"Yon  saw  Mr.  White  sitting  there?" 

"I  did." 

"Did  you  see  "Sir.  Thaw  then?" 

"Xot  until  a  minute  or  so  afterward.  He  waa 
directly  in  front  of  Mr.  Wliite,  standing  with  his  arm 
up  in  the  air." 

"Did  vou  hear  sh  )ts  fired?" 


84  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

''Yes,  immediately  after  I  saw  Mr.  White -I  heard 
the  shots." 

"How  many  shots?" 

"Three  shots." 

"What  did  you  say?" 

"I  said  to  Mr.  McCaleb:  'I  think  he  has  shot 
him."' 

"Did  Mr.  Thaw^  come  over  to  where  you  were?" 

"Yes,  I  asked  him  what  he  had  done.  He  leaned 
over  and  kissed  me  and  said :  '  I  have  probably  saved 
your  life.'  " 

"What  happened  then?" 

"I  left." 

"You  were  taken  from  there?" 

"Yes,  I  think  with  Mr.  McCaleb  and  Mr.  Beale." 

"You  left  and  did  not  return?" 

"Yes." 

"You  said  that  you  are  the  wife  of  the  defen- 
dant?" 

"Yes." 

"When  were  you  married?" 

"On  April  4,  1905." 

"Where?" 

"In  Pittsburo-,  at  the  residence  of  Dr.  McEwen, 
pastor  of  the  Third  Presbyterian  church." 

"Who  were  present?" 

"I  think  Josiah  Thaw,  Mr.  Thaw's  brother,"  the 
witness  went  on,  after  a  moment. 


A  HUMAN  SACRIFICE  85 

"When  had  Mr.  Thaw  proposed  for  the  first  time?" 

''In  June,  1903,  in  Paris." 

"At  the  time  did  you  refuse  him?" 

"I  did." 

"Did  you  state  in  explaining  your  refusal  of  his 
proposal  that  it  had  something  to  do  with  Stanford 
\Yhite?" 

"Yes." 

"State  what  happened." 

"Mr.  Thaw  told  me  that  he  loved  me  and  wanted 
to  marry  me.  I  stared  at  him  for  a  moment  and  then 
he  said,  'Don't  you  care  for  meV  and  I  said  that  I 
did.  Then  he  asked  me  what  was  the  matter.  I  said 
'nothing.'  *AVhy  won't  you  many  me?'  he  said. 
He  put  his  hands  on  my  shoulder  and  asked,  "Is  it 
because  of  Stanford  White?'  and  I  said  'yes.'  Then 
he  told  me  he  would  never  love  any  one  else  or  marry 
any  one  else.  I  started  to  cry.  He  said  he  wanted 
me  to  tell  him  the  whole  thing.  Then  I  began  to  tell 
him  how  I  first  met  Stanford  White. ' ' 

At  this  frail  Evelyn  collapsed  utterly.  Falling 
back  in  her  chair,  her  beautiful  features  ghastly  pale, 
she  murmured: 

"I  can't  go  on!    I  can't!    I  can't!" 

The  court  windows  were  opened,  an  alienist  who 
was  present  applied  restoratives,  and  in  a  few  min- 
utes ^Irs.  Thaw  was  able  to  go  on  to  the  story  of  her 
ruin. 


86  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Evelyn  Nesbit*s  First  Public  Appearance 

Sweet-voiced  Child  of  5  Sang  Requiem  for  the  Dead  in  Village  Church, 
Moving  Congregation  to  Tears. 

Florence  Evelyn  Nesbit  was  a  particular!}-  inter- 
esting child,  very  quiet,  somewhat  shy,  and  did  not 
easily  make  friends  with  anyone,  but  when  one  did 
gain  her  confidence  she  was  a  loyal  friend.  She  was 
a  very  beautiful  child  and  had  a  remarkably  sweet 
voice  for  one  so  tender  in  years. 

Her  gift  was  so  marked  that  she  made  her  first 
public  appearance  at  the  age  of  5.  It  was  at  a  me- 
morial service  in  the  Methodist  church  of  which  her 
parents  were  members.  It  was  held  in  honor  of  the 
members  who  had  died  during  the  year.  The  church 
was  decorated  for  the  occasion  with  an  immense  bank 
of  evergreens  completely  screening  the  pulpit. 

In  the  midst  of  a  solemn  hush  in  the  service  came 
the  dulcet  voice  of  a  child  singing.  It  was  little  Flor- 
ence Evelyn,  hidden  behind  the  evergreens,  and  in 
tones  that  will  never  be  forgotten  by  the  hearers,  and 
which  w^ere  clear  and  distinct  in  all  parts  of  the  edi- 
fice, came  the  words  of  the  hymn,  "We  Are  Going 
Down  the  Valley  One  by  One. ' '  Before  the  song  was 
half  finished  nearly  the  entire  audience  was  moved  to 
tears. 

Softly,  tremulously,  yet  distinctly,  came  the  im- 
pressive burden  of  the  song.  It  was  a  splendid 
triumph  for  the  child,  and  it  still  lingers  in  the  hearts 
of  the  people  who  were  there,  its  remembrance  helped 
them  in  the  midst  of  her  trials  to  sympathize  with 
and  pity  her. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 
Evelyn  Reveals  White  as  a  Fearful  Monster. 

STAGGERING  BLOW  TO  PROSECUTION  — MOB  OF  WOMEN 
FIGPITS  TO  ENTER  COURT— PATHETIC  SCENE — HAND 
OP^  MAGICIAN  SUGGESTED  IN  DOORS  THAT  OPEN  W^ITH- 
Or:T  HUMAN  AID— AT  AGE  OF  16,  BEAUTY  FELL  INTO 
CLUTCHES  OF  UNSCRUPULOUS  MILLIONAIRE— THOUGHT 
WHITE  AN  ''ugly  MAN '^— RED  VELVET  SWING  IN  DEN 
OF  :MIRR0RS— BEAUTY  DRUGGED  WITH  WINE— MOTH- 
ER's  INFLUENCE  REVEALED— PHOTOGR.VPHED  IN  KIMO- 
NO—LURED     TO    white's     STUDIO. 

The  staggering  blow  to  Jerome  was  about  to  be 
dealt.  Tense,  nervous,  and  thrilled  with  emotions 
of  pity,  the  spectators  hung  on  every  word  of  the 
pale  Evelyn  when  she  resumed  her  testimony. 

Word  of  the  impending  revelations  mysteriously 
got  outside  the  court-room,  although  the  doors  were 
barred. 

The  corridors  were  filled,  and  scores  of  people, 
many  of  them  women,  tried  in  every  possible  way  to 
force  themselves  by  the  officers  at  the  courtroom 
doors,  but  after  the  preceding  afternoon's  laxity  the 
bars  were  put  up  again  and  very  few  were  allowed 
to  pass. 

However,  half  a  score  of  women  managed  to  suc- 

87 


88 


THE  GREAT  THA^Y  CASE 


ceed.     Tliey  were  attired  in  their  gayest  costumes, 
in  marked  contrast  with  the  costume  of  IMrs.  Thaw. 

Evelyn  on  the  stand  did  not  look  even  her  23  years. 
She  was  dressed  in  a  plain  dark  blue  gown,  with  a 
long  coat  and  wore  a  broad  white  linen  collar.  Her 
hat  was  dark  and  low  in  the  cro\Aai,  with  a  broad 
soft  brim,  and  trimmed  with  a  small  bunch  of  violets. 
She  wore  her  hair  in  a  loose  knot  low  on  her  neck, 
tied  with  a  large  black  ribbon.  Her  face,  which  until 
she  took  the  stand,  Avas  unusually  pale,  was  first 
flushed,  then  ghastly  in  its  pallor.  It  was  marked 
with  delicate  eye-brows  and  long  lashes.  Her  eyes 
were  large  and  dark,  and  appealing,  and  her  dark 
hair  required  frequent  brushing  back  from  her  eyes. 
Her  slender  figure  was  tense  with  excitement,  and  her 
voice  was  usually  firm  and  clear. 

Even  while  the  women  were  fighting  their  way  into 
the  room,  the  questioning  was  resumed.  IMrs.  Thaw 
told  of  the  startling  crime  of  Stanford  White,  that 
blighted  her  young  life,  and  made  her  beauty  a  mock- 
ery. 

Attorney  Delmas,  ever  alert  to  forestall  the  mass 
of  objections  by  Jerome  at  every  opportunity,  cau- 
tioned the  witness: 

"Be  kind  enough  to  remember  you  are  to  omit," 
said  Mr.  Delmas,  "in  relating  the  narrative  of  what 
you  told  ]\Ir.  Thaw,  the  name  of  any  other  person 
save  that  of  Mr.  White.     Now  continue." 

"A  young  lady  asked  my  mother  several  times  to 


EVELYN  NESBIT  AS  "THE  SUNBONNET  GIRL" 
when  1 6  years  old. 


"WRITE  A  MONSTER  91 

let  me  go  out  with  her  to  lunch,"  said  the  fragile 
beauty,  Mrs.  Thaw.  "She  came  again  and  again  to 
me  before  I  sent  her  to  my  mother,  finally,  and  she 
said,  'All  right.'     My  mother  finally  consented." 

"Proceed." 

"On  the  day  I  was  to  go  my  mother  dressed  me 

and  I  went  with  Miss ,  the  other  young  lady,  in 

a  hansom,  hoping  we  would  go  to  the  ballroom,  be- 
cause I  wanted  to  see  it.  But  we  went  straight  down 
to  Broadwa}^  through  Twenty-fourth  street  up  to  a 
dingy  looking  door.  The  young  lady  jumped  out 
and  asked  me  to  follow  her," 

Mr.  Jerome  objected  to  the  form  of  the  narrative, 
and  he  asked:  'Did  you  relate  all  that  to  Mr. 
Thaw?'" 

"Yes,"  said  the  witness.  "He  told  me  to  tell  him 
everything. ' ' 

"By  the  way,"  interjected  Delmas,  "what  was  the 
date  of  that  event?" 

"As  nearly  as  I  can  remember,"  with  a  pucker  of 
forehead,  "it  was  in  August,  1901." 

"You  were  then  16  years  and  some  months  old?" 

"Well,  now  I  want  you  to  tell  of  your  first  meeting 
with  Stanford  White  just  as  you  told  it  to  Mr.  Thaw 
on  that  day,"  directed  Delmas. 

The  show  girl  said  that  a  chorus  girl,  Edna  Good- 
rich, asked  her  to  a  luncheon  party  where  she  would 
meet  AVhite.  She  and  Edna  took  a  cab  and  went  to 
the  studio  on  West  Twenty-fourth  street.     The  wit- 


92  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

ness  said  the  doors  seemed  to  open  of  themselves. 

''We  went  upstairs,"  said  Evelyn,  "and  there  I 
met  a  man  who  was  introduced  to  me  as  Stanford 
White.  I  thought  him  an  ugly  man.  There  was  a 
table  already  set  for  four.  Another  gentleman  came 
later.  I  remember  Mr.  White  teased  me  about  my 
hair,  which  I  wore  down  my  back,  and  my  short  skirt, 
which  reached  to  my  shoe  tops.  After  supper  we 
went  up  two  flights  of  stairs  more,  and  in  the  room 
was  a  large  red  velvet  SAving.  Mr.  White  put  me  in 
the  swing  and  swung  me  very  hard.  When  we  swung 
very  hard  one  foot  crashed  through  a  large  Japanese 
umbrella  which  hung  from  the  ceiling. 

''Your  mother  dressed  you  to  go? 

"Yes." 

' '  I  must  caution  you  to  tell  only  what  you  told  Mr. 
Thaw." 

"I  will,"  said  the  witness,  and  went  on;  "The 
dingy  door  opened,  nobody  seeming  to  open  it." 

"What  did  you  do  then?" 

"We  went  up  some  steps  to  another  door,  which 
opened  to  some  other  apartment.  I  stopped  and 
asked  the  young  lady  where  we  were  going  and  she 
said:  'It's  all  right.'  A  man's  voice  called  down 
'Hello.'  " 

"Who  was  it?" 

"It  was  Stanford  White,"  said  the  witness  clearly. 
What  did  you  find  in  the  room  or  studio  to  which 
you  went?" 

A  table  set  for  four." 


( < 


WHITE  A  MONSTER  93 

''This  is  all  what  you  told  Mr.  Thaw,"  put  in  Mr. 
Jerome. 

"It  was,"  said  young  Mrs.  Thaw,  "I  told  him 
everything. ' ' 

There  was  a  halt  in  the  testimony  here  while  Mr. 
Jerome  and  Mr.  Delmas  whispered. 

"How  were  you  dressed?"  asked  Mr.  Delmas. 

"I  wore  a  short  dress,  with  my  hair  down  my 
back." 

The  witness  said  they  went  up  into  another  room, 
where  a  big  Japanese  umbrella  was  swinging. 

Mr.  Jerome  objected  to  the  testimony  on  the  ground 
that  he  would  have  no  opportunity  to  prove  or  dis- 
prove the  facts  alleged.  IMr.  Delmas  said  the  de- 
fense would  offer  no  objection  to  the  district  attorney 
probing  tlie  correctness  of  the  facts. 

Mrs.  Thaw  then  said  that  afterward  she  and  her 
companion  went  for  a  drive  to  the  park,  then  re- 
turned to  the  house  with  White.  She  said  when  she 
^ot  home  she  told  her  mother  everything  that  hap- 
pened. 

"Did  your  mother  subsequently  receive  a  letter 
from  Stanford  White?"  was  asked. 

"She  did." 

"What  was  in  the  letter?" 

"It  asked  my  mother  to  call  on  "Sir.  White  at  160 
Fifth  avenue." 

"Did  you  tell  Mr.  Thaw  about  that?" 

"I  did." 


94  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

"When  your  mother  returned  did  she  tell  you  any- 
thing?" 

"She  did." 

"What  did  your  mother  tell  you?" 

"He  asked  her  to  take  me  to  a  dentist  and  have 
my  teeth  fixed  and  for  her  to  have  her  own  fixed, 
too.  She  said:  'No;  that  it  was  a  very  strange 
thing. '  Mr.  White  told  her  that  he  did  that  for  the 
other  Florodora  girls." 

"When  did  you  next  see  White?" 

"I  saw  him  in  the  studio.  I  got  a  note  from  him 
previously  inviting  me  to  a  party  and  saying  a  car- 
riage v/ould  be  waiting  for  me  on  the  corner.  Be- 
fore that  he  had  sent  me  a  hat,  a  feather  boa,  and  a 
cape.     There  was  another  man.  and  girl  with  us." 

Mr.  Delmas  mentioned  the  names  of  the  others  to 
]Mr.  Jerome. 

"Where  did  you  go?" 

"To  the  studio  in  IMadison  Square  tower.  We  had 
a  very  nice  time  there.  ]\Ir.  White  said  I  was  only 
tt)  have  one  glass  of  champagne,  and  that  I  was  to  be 
brought  home  early.  I  was  brought  home  early  to 
the  door  of  my  house.  I  told  Mr.  Thaw  that  we  had 
several  parties  of  this  kind  in  the  tower." 

"Did  you  see  ^Ir.  White  again?" 

"Yes,  he  came  to  see  my  mother,  told  her  that  I 
would  be  all  riglit  in  New  York,  and  that  he  would 
take  care  of  me." 

Mrs.  Thaw  said  she  met  Whit"  in  Soptembei-,  1901. 


WHITE  A  MOXSTER  95 

in  a  studio  in  East  Twenty-second  street.  The  door 
opened  of  itself,  she  said,'  and  the  house  looked  at 
first  as  if  no  one  lived  there.  She  said  that  she  went 
upstairs  and  met  Mr.  White,  a  photographer,  and 
another  man. 

The  witness  whispered  the  name  of  the  man  to  Mr. 
Jerome,  who  wrote  it  down. 

"What  did  you  see  there?" 

"There  was  a  lot  of  expensive  gowns  there." 

"What  happened?" 

' '  I  went  into  the  dressing-room  to  put  on  the  dress. 
Mr.  White  knocked  at  the  door  and  asked  if  I  needed 
any  help.     I  said,  'No.'  " 

]\rrs.  Thaw  related  in  detail  her  experience  in  the 
photographic  studio  and  said  she  posed  until  she  was 
very  tired  and  that  White,  who  had  come  in,  ordered 
food  and  they  had  something  to  eat.  The  photo- 
grapher left,  she  said,  and  after  they  had  lunched  she 
went  into  a  dressing  room  to  remove  her  kimona  and 
put  on  her  dress. 

"I  shut  the  door  while  I  was  inside,"  added  the 
witness.  "Mr.  White  came  to  the  door,  knocked  and 
asked  me  if  I  wanted  any  help.     I  said:  'No.'  " 

The  former  artist's  model  testified  that  she  drank 
])ut  one  glass  of  champagne  and  when  she  was  dressed 
she  got  into  a  carriage  and  was  taken  back  to  the 
hotel. 

"The  next  night,"  she  continued,  "I  got  a  note 
from  Mr.  White  askin":  me  to  come  down  to  the  studio 


96  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

for  luncheon  after  the  theater  with  some  of  his 
friends.  A  carriage  would  call  for  me,  and  would 
take  me  home  after  the  party,  he  wrote.  I  went 
down  to  the  Twenty-fourth  street  studio  again  and 
found  Mr.  White  and  no  one  else  there. 

"  'What  do  you  think,'  he  said  to  me,  'the  others 
have  turned  us  down.'  Then  I  told  him  I  had  better 
go  home,  and  he  told  me  that  I  had  better  sit  down 
and  have  some  fruit.  So  I  took  off  my  hat  and  coat. 
Mr.  White  told  me  he  had  other  floors  in  the  garden, 
and  that  I  had  not  seen  all  of  his  place.  He  would 
take  me  around  and  show  me,  he  said. 

''So  he  took  me  up  some  stairs  to  the  floor  above, 
where  there  were  very  beautiful  decorations,"  went 
on  Mrs.  Thaw.  "I  played  for  him,  and  he  took  me 
into  another  room.  That  room  was  a  bedroom.  On 
a  small  table  stood  a  bottle  of  champagne  and  one 
glass.  Mr.  White  poured  out  just  one  glass  for  me, 
and  I  paid  no  attention  to  it.  Mr.  White  went  away, 
came  back  and  said:  'I  decorated  this  room,  myself.' 
Then  he  asked  me  why  I  was  not  drinking  my  cham- 
pagne and  I  said  I  did  not  like  it;  it  tasted  bitter. 
But  he  persuaded  me  to  drink  it  and  I  did. 

"A  few  moments  after  I  had  drank  it  there  began 
a  pounding  and  thumping  in  my  ears  and  the  room 
got  all  black." 

Mrs.  Thaw  was  almost  in  tears  at  this  statement. 

"When  I  came  to  myself  I  was  greatly  fi'ightened 
and    I    started    to    scream.     Mr.    White    came    and 


''■^■^-  ^-  i'-.^<^ —  - — jL^gLg^  ^-aa  ^v-r     ...  .-.'.-  '-jgij^aa^ijaaaag 


MMMMMMaiaaSiiiiai 


Picture  taken  in  Stanford  White's  studio. 


WHITE  A  3I0NSTER  99 

tried  to  quiet  me.  As  I  sat  up  I  saw  mirrors  all  over. 
I  began  to  scream  again,  and  Mr.  White  asked  me  to 
keep  quiet,  saying  that  it  was  all  over. 

"When  he  threw  the  kimono  over  me  he  left  the 
room.  I  screamed  harder  than  ever.  I  don't  re- 
member much  of  anything  after  that. 

*'He  took  me  home  and  I  sat  up  all  night  crying." 

Regard  for  the  morals  of  the  young  prevents  the 
l)ublication  of  the  awful  details  disclosed  at  this 
point  in  the  evidence.  The  yellowest  of  yellow  jour- 
nals omitted  the  hideous  details  flashed  over  the 
wires,  and  with  all  the  shocking  evidence  published, 
the  public  has  no  conception  of  awful  facts  revealed 
by  this  pitiful  tragedy. 

"What  did  he  say  afterward?" 

"He  made  me  swear  that  I  would  never  tell  my 
mother  about  it.  He  said  there  was  no  use  in  talking 
and  the  greatest  thing  in  this  world  was  not  to  get 
found  out.  He  said  the  girls  in  the  theaters  were 
foolish  to  talk.     He  laughed  afterward. 

"He  said  it  was  all  right— that  there  was  'nothing 
so  nice  as  youno:  girls  and  nothing  so  loathsome  as 
fat  ones.     You  must  never  get  fat.'  " 

The  black  heart  of  Stanford  White  was  disclosed  in 
all  its  hideousness  at  last!  The  final  shred  of  respec- 
tability had  been  torn  from  his  reputation.  The  al- 
most fainting  Evelyn  had  completed  the  human  sac- 
rifice. Her  life  story,  tragic  beyond  human  compre- 
hension, had  been  told  under  oath— told  to  a  Jury 


100  THE  GEE  AT  THAW  CASE 

that  gasped  at  every  sentence-,  shuddered  at  every  dis- 
closure. It  was  the  coup  d'etat  of  the  defense!  the 
staggering  blow  reserved  to  overwhelm  Jerome  and 
his  allies.  What  a  story  it  was  that  the  poor  little 
victim  of  a  sybaritic  brute  told !  What  a  tale  of 
Xero's  time  it  seemed  to  be!  Tiberius  and  Caligula 
planned  dens  and  stage  settings  such  as  Evelyn  Xes- 
bit  described  in  the  haunts  of  Stanford  White.  Did 
Tiberius  and  Caligula  ever  plan  darker,  more  foul 
conspiracies  against  helpless  little  girls  than  the  plots 
of  the  great  architect  seemed  to  have  been?  And 
with  the  telling  of  the  heart-rending  story  came  new 
thoughts,  new  lights  upon  the  shadowy  life  of  the 
man  who  died  before  the  pistol  of  Harry  Thaw. 

No  one  ever  denied  that  Stanford  White,  no  matter 
what  he  may  have  been^  was  a  generous  giver,  a  good 
Samaritan  in  the  time  of  need.  He  supported  Eve- 
lyn, her  mother,  and  her  brother,  in  royal  fashion. 

What  was  to  be  deduced  from  the  largess  of  White, 
both  to  the  Nesbits  and  to  scores  of  others? 

AVas  the  licentious  architect  a  Jekyll  and  a  Hyde? 

Or  did  the  weight  of  remorse  and  gloomy  shame 
bear  down  upon  this  strangest  of  men  in  such  degree 
that  he  strove  mightily  to  salve  his  conscience  and  his 
bitter  memories? 

Or  was  White  ''a  bookkeeper  with  the  Fates"— 
a  man  who  tried  ever  to  balance  the  accounts  of  good 
and  bad,  so  that  the  final  reckoning  might  find  his 
ledgers   balanced?     There  are  many  men  who  keep 


.      WHITE  A  MONSTER  101 

the  lists  of  debits  and  of  credits — who  strive  to  make 
a  deed  of  kindness  balance  every  deed  of  crime. 
Was  White  such  a  man— bookkeeping  with  the  Fates, 
and  seeking  by  princely  generosity  to  offset  the  debits 
of  unscrupulous  passion?  She  sat  in  the  witness 
chair,  a  tiny,  shrinking  figure,  and  she  spoke  out  the 
horrid  details  of  the  criminal  outrage  upon  her; 
unhesitating  and  unbreaking.  The  kindliness  of 
White,  all  with  its  ultimate  hideous  object  masked 
beneath  the  roses;  the  mirrored  room  in  the  archi- 
tect's hidden  lair;  the  drugged  wine;  the  awakening 
—all  these  things  the  little  Evelyn  told  with  the  close 
precision  of  a  seared  and  branded  memory.  And 
when  the  story  had  been  spun  the  shrewd  and  skillful 
Delmas  smiled  serene,  well  knowing  that  a  probably 
fatal  blow  had  been  dealt  the  prosecution.  The 
"learned  Jerome,"  as  Delmas  suavely  called  him, 
spent  the  night  before  planning  and  massing  his  ar- 
tillery.    He  had  a  fearful  day  of  defeat  and  sorrow. 


CHAPTER     IX. 
Intrigue  Like  Those  in  Days  of  Nero. 

EVELYN  TELLS  HOW  WHITE  PLOTTED  WITH  FALSEHOODS 
AND  MONEY  AS  HIS  INSTRUMENTS,  TO  BLAST  HER  LIFE 
BY  FORCING  HER  TO  LEAVE  HARRY  THAW  — SOI'GIIT 
TO  WRECK  HER  LOVE  — HUSBAND  GHASTLY  IN  COURT  — 
LAWYER  DICTATED  '' AFFIDAVIT"  ACCUSING  THAW, 
WHILE  BEAUTIFUL  ACTRESS  WEPT— BREACH  OF  PROM- 
ISE SUIT  CONSPIRACY— BLACKMAIL  HINTED— WHITE 
FLEECED  — ARCHITECT  EVEN  TRIED  TO  STEAL  EVELYN 
PROM  HUSBAND— JACK  BARRYMORE,  ACTOR,  BROUGHT 
INTO  CASE  — WANTED  TO  MARRY  WITNESS— PROPOSED 
TWICE— RUIN  OF  OTHER  GIRLS  BROUGHT  UP— EVERY- 
BODY AFFECTED  BY  TRAGIC  STORY. 

''I  refused  to  marry  Harry  at  first  because  I  loved 
him  — it  was  because  of  my  reputation.  I  loved  him 
more  than  all  else — more  than  my  own  life.  I  did  not 
want  to  ruin  his  career,  to  e.stran<i:e  him  from  his 
family  and  blast  his  future,  "—Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw 
told  the  Jury. 

Intrigue— a  story  of  intrigue  by  Stanford  White  to 
steal  Evelyn  Nesbit 's  love  away  from  Ilariy  Thaw 
by  means  of  false,  shocking  stories  of  cruelty  to  other 
women  was  bared  by  the  fragile  Evelyn  the  second 
day  she  was  on  the  stand. 

Spectators  shuddered  at  the  diabolical  ingenuity  of 

102 


A  TALE  OF  INTRIGUE  103 

Whife,  millionaire,  famous  and  feted,  who,  with  nobln 
aims  ready  for  his  mind,  diverted  his  talent  instead 
to  hideous  crimes. 

The  ordeal  of  the  witness  chair  had  made  nervous 
wrecks  of  the  frail  woman,  and  of  her  husband,  for 
whose  life  she  was  battling.  Young  Thaw  for  the 
finst  time  since  the  trial  began  had  lost  the  spring  in 
his  step,  and  instead  of  walking  briskly  to  his  place 
at  the  table  of  his  counsel  he  moved  hesitatingly  and 
looked  constantly  from  left  to  right  about  the  court- 
room. The  big  crowd  seemed  to  annoy  him.  The 
pallid  face  broke  into  a  faint  smile  as  the  prisoner 
recognized  his  brother,  Edward  Thaw,  who  was  the 
only  member  of  the  family  in  court. 

''Call  Mrs.  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw  to  the  stand,"  re- 
quested Mr.  Del  mas  of  the  clerk. 

When  she  appeared  and  took  her  place  in  the  big 
witness  chair  Mrs.  Thaw  was  dressed  precisely  as  on 
the  previous  day.  She  was  extremely  pale  and  her- 
lips  trembled  visibly  as  she  replied  to  the  first  simf)l<' 
(j[uestion  asked  her  by  counsel. 

"Please  relate  what  you  told  Mr.  Thaw  besides 
what  you  stated  before,"  said  Mr.  Delmas,  looking  af 
Jerome,  as  if  to  say,  "You  cannot  stop  me  now." 

"He  asked  me  how  I  came  to  speak  to  Stanford 
White  after  my  return  from  Europe,"  said  Mrs. 
Thaw.  "I  told  him  I  was  driving  down  Fifth  avenue 
one  day  in  a  hansom  cab  with  my  maid  and  we  passed 


104  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Stanford  White.  I  heard  hira  exclaim :  '  Oh,  look 
at  Evelyn.' 

''A  few  days  later  I  was  called  to  the  telephone 
and  it  was  Mr.  White.  He  said :  '  My,  but  it  is  good 
to  hear  your  voice  again, '  and  said  he  wanted  to  come 
and  see  me.  I  told  him  I  could  not  see  him.  He 
said  it  was  very  important  that  I  should  see  him  at 
once.  He  said  he  had  had  much  trouble  with  my 
family  and  must  see  me.  I  asked  if  my  mother  was 
ill.'' 

*'He  said  it  was  a  matter  of  life  and  death— he 
could  not  tell  me  over  the  telephone.  So  he  came  to 
see  me  at  the  Hotel  Savoy. 

"When  he  came  in  he  tried  to  kiss  me,  but  I  did 
not  let  him.  He  asked  me  what  Avas  the  matter.  I 
told  him  to  sit  down  and  asked  him  again  if  my 
mother  was  ill.  He  said,  ^No,'  and  at  once  began,  to 
talk  about  Harry  Thaw.  He  told  me  that  different 
actresses  had  told  him  that  I  was  in  Europe  with 
Harry  Thaw. 

"He  said  presently  that  Harry  Thaw  took  me  to 
Europe,  and  asked  me  why  I  Avent  around  with  a 
man  who  took  morphine.  He  said  positively  that 
Harry  Thaw  took  morphine,  th^t  he  was  not  even  a 
gentleman,  and  I  must  have  nothing  to  do  with  him. 

"After  that  he  came  constantly  to  see  me.  He  also 
sent  people  to  me  Avho  told  me  stories  about  ]\Ir. 
Thaw,  the  stories  I  told  yesterday.  I  told  Mr.  Thaw 
afterwai'd  that  the  stories  worried  me  so  much  I  could 


A  TALE  OF  IXTEIGUE  105 

not  sleep  nights.  I  got  very  nervous,  for  I  knew  ^Ir. 
Thaw  was  coming  over  and  I  did  not  want  to  see  him. 
1  told  ^h\  White  I  did  not  want  to  see  ]\Ir.  Thaw. 

"One  day  Mr.  White  telephoned  me  that  he  was 
going  to  send  a  carriage  for  me  and  I  was  to  come 
t )  Broadway  and  Nineteenth  street.  I  did  so,  and 
White  met  me  and  got  into  the  carriage.  He  said 
he  was  taking  me  to  see  Abe  Hummel,  the  greatest 
lawyer  in  New  York,  who  would  protect  me  from 
Harry  Thaw.  He  said  I  was  not  to  be  afraid  of  Mr. 
Hummel ;  he  was  a  little  man  with  a  big,  bald  head, 
warts  on  his  face  and  was  very  ugly. 

''AVhen  I  got  to  Mr.  Hummel's  office  Mr.  White 
went  away.  Mr.  Hummel's  office  walls  were  covered 
with  photographs  of  actresses,  with  writing  on  them. 
He  asked  me  how  I  came  to  go  to  Europe  with  Harry 
Thaw,  and  I  told  him  that  I  didn't,  I  went  with  my 
mother  and  Thaw  followed  us.  He  asked  me  about 
my  quarrel  with  my  mother  in  London.  I  said  it  was 
a  continuous  quarrel  between  us;  we  simply  couldn't 
get  along.  She  wanted  to  come  home  to  America 
and  I  said  she  could  come,  but  I  was  going  to  stay 
there  and  return  to  the  stage ;  but  the  doctor  told  me 
I  couldn't  dance  for  a  year.  Hummel  asked  me  all 
l)laces  where  I  went  with  Thaw. 

"I  told  him  all  I  could  remember.  He  said  I  was 
a  minor  and  that  Thaw  should  have  been  more  care- 
ful.    He  said  he  had  a  case  in  his  office  against  Thaw, 


106  THE  QBE  AT  TE.UY  CASE 

but  the  woman  in  the  case  Avas  a  very  bad  one  and  ho 
did  not  think  the  case  was  much  good. 

"Then  he  said  Thaw  was  a  very  bad  man,  and, 
above  all  things,  I  must  be  protected  from  him.  Mr. 
White  then  said  that  the  other  man  was  to  get  Harry 
Thaw  out  of  New  York  and  keep  him  out. 

"They  asked  me  if  I  went  to  Europe  of  my  own 
accord,  and  I  said  I  certainly  had.  I  said  I  remained 
in  Europe  after  my  mother  left  because  I  had  quar- 
reled with  her  and  could  not  dance  for  a  year,  and 
1  liked  Mr.  Thaw  very  much  and  could  not  do  any- 
thing else. 

"  'Nevertheless,'  Hummel  said,  'you  are  a  nn'nor 
and  he  should  not  have  taken  you  away  from  your 
mother.'     I  said  he  did  not  take  me  away. 

"Mr.  White  said  that  strong  methods  must  be  re- 
sorted to  to  keep  Thaw  out  of  New  York,  and  to 
protect  myself  I  must  help  in  every  way  I  could. 

"Mr.  White  said  I  must  leave  everything  in.  Mr. 
Hummel 's  hands.  Then  they  sent  for  a  stenographer, 
and  the  lawyer  said  I  must  not  interrupt  him  in  what 
he  was  about  to  say.  I  was  very  nervous  and  excited, 
and  I  think  I  began,  to  cry.  Then  they  began  to 
dictate  and  put  in  a  lot  of  stuff  that  I  had  been  car- 
ried away  by  Harry  Thaw  against  my  will.  I  started 
to  interrupt,  but  the  lawyer  put  up  his  hands  and 
stopped  me. 

"They  put  in  that  1  had  l)een  taken  away  from 
my  mother  and  a  lot  of  st'iff  that  was  not  true— that 


JUSTICE     FITZGERALD 
Judge  in  charge  of  trial. 


A  TALE  OF  INTRIGUE  109 

I  had  been  treated  badly  by  Mr.  Thaw.  Then  they 
sent  the  man  out  of  the  room. 

"Several  days  later  Mr.  Hummel  called  me  up  and 
asked  if  I  had  any  letters  from  Mr.  Thaw. 

' '  I  said  I  did,  but  I  could  not  see  what  that  had  to 
do  with  it.  Mr.  White  also  called  up  and  said  if  I 
was  not  willing  to  help  in  every  way  they  could  not 
protect  me  from  Mr.  Thaw.  He  said  I  must  do  just 
what  ^Ir.  Hummel  said.  So  I  made  the  letters  up 
in  a  bundle  and  took  them  down  to  Mr.  Hummel's 
office.  He  said  he  did  not  want  to  read  them,  and 
did  not  care  what  they  contained.  He  asked,  how- 
ever, if  they  were  love  letters,  and  I  said  'yes.' 

"He  said  he  jiLst  wanted  to  hold  them  over  Harry 
K.  Thaw's 'head.  He  sealed  them  up  in  a  big  en- 
velope so  I  could  see,  he  said,  that  he  did  not  care 
anything  about  them. 

"Then  he  asked  me  why  I  did  not  sue  Harry  Thaw 
for  breach  of  promise.  I  said  that  was  absurd,  for 
if  there  had  been  any  breach  of  promise  it  was  on 
my  part.     He"  said  that  did  not  matter. 

"Mr.  Hummel  said  a  breach  of  promise  suit  would 
be  a  fine  advertisement  for  me.  I  told  him  I  did  not 
care  for  that  kind  of  advertising.  He  said  lots  of 
actresses  had  done  the  same  thing  and  he  had  won 
lots  of  cases  for  them.  He  told  me  an  English  duke 
had  once  been  sued  by  an  actress  for  breach  of  prom- 
ise. He  declared  he  could  easily  win  a  suit  for  me. 
I  said  I  did  not  want  to  sue  anybody. 


no  THE  GEE  AT  THAW  CASE 

'^This  made  Mr,  Hummel  very  mad  and  angry 
and  he  told  me  I  was  foolish." 

"What  more  did  you  tell  Mr.  Thaw?"  suggested 
Mr.  Delmas,  to  give  the  girl  witness  a  breathing  spell. 

"Mr.  Thaw  asked  me  if  I  had  si^ed  an}1:hing  in 
Mr.  Hummel 's  office  and  I  said  I  had  not.  He  said 
that  was  funny,  for  if  they  wanted  to  cause  trouble 
I  must  have  signed  something.  I  said  I  had  signed 
absoluteh"  nothing  in  I\Ir.  Hummel's  office. 

"Mr.  Thaw  was  very^  much  agitated.  He  said 
Hummel  was  a  blackmailer  and  he  said,  I  think,  that 
there  was  something  bad  in  the  air  and  he  impressed 
me  that  he  was  going  to  see  ]\Ir.  Longfellow,  his 
lawyer." 

Mrs.  Thaw  testified  to  going  to  her  own  lawyer 
and  relating  her  experiences  with  Hummel.  Her 
lawyer,  she  said,  was  greatly  incensed  at  what  she 
told  him  of  her  experiences  in  Hummel's  oiBce.  Mrs. 
Thaw  said : 

"My  lawyer,  too,  told  me  that  Hummel  was  a 
shyster."  A  laugh  went  around  the  room.  Hum- 
mel was  at  this  time  under  conviction  in  a  divorc" 
scandal.     Mrs.    Thaw    continued : 

"Mr.  Thaw  told  me  that  I  had  no  business  to  speak 
{lira in  with  Stanford  White.  He  accused  me  of  hav- 
ing been  imprudent  with  Mr.  White  since  I  came 
back  from  Europe,  and  I  said  that  it  was  a  lie.  Hi- 
said  it  would  look  to  people  as  if  I  was  a  blackmailer 
l)y  going  to  Hummel's  office." 

"Did  you  tell  of  another  incident?" 


A  TALE  OF  IXTRIGUE  111 

"Yes,,  I  told  him  of  one  day  when  ^V]lite  came  to 
the  hotel  Xavarre  and  he  was  terribly  mad,  and 
walked  np  and  down  the  room  with  a  camp  chair  in 
his  hand.  '^ly  child,'  he  said,  'what  did  you  tell 
IMr.  Hummel  about  me?'  I  said  I  had  not  said  any- 
thing, and  then  Mr.  AYhite  said  I  must  have  told 
Hummel,  because  Hummel  had  just  squeezed  $1,000 
out  of  him  and  he  was  not  going  to  send  another 
$1,000." 

The  witness,  continuing,  said  that  she  did  not  know 
what  she  had  signed  when  she  signed  the  paper  at  the 
request  of  Mr.  White  in  his  office  in  Madison  Square 
garden. 

"I  called  Mr.  AYhite  up  on  the  telephone  after  I 
had  talked  to  Mr.  Thaw,  and  I  demanded  of  ^Iv. 
White  that  he  put  the  paper  in  the  fire.  He  said  he 
did  not  have  it — but  that  it  was  in  Mr.  Hummel's 
office.  I  said:  'Yery  well,'  and  told  him  I  was  go- 
ing  down  to  Mr.  Hummel's  office  immediately.  He 
told  me  to  not  talk  about  the  matter  over  the  tele- 
l)hone,  and  I  said  I  did  not  care  who  heard  me. 
Then  White  said  he  would  meet  me  on  the  corner  and 
I  met  him. 

"AVhen  I  met  him  we  went  down  to  Mr.  Hummel's 
office.  He  showed  me  the  paper  and  showed  me  my 
signature  and  asked  if  it  was  mine,  and  I  said  it  was. 
Then  they  put  the  paper  in  a  big  jardiniere  and 
burned  it.  Afterward  I  told  Mr.  Thaw  all  about  it 
uiid  also  saw  ^Ir.  Loiwfellow  and  told  him. 


112  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

' '  How  did  Mr.  Thaw  treat  you  from  that  time  until 
he  proposed  marriage?" 

"He  treated  me  very  nicely:  carried  me  up  and 
down  stairs  when  I  was  sick  and  brought  me  flowers 
and  took  me  carriage  riding." 

After  her  marriage  to  ^Ir.  Thaw  the  witness  said 
they  took  a  trip  through  the  west.  While  in  Pitts- 
l)urg,  she  said,  she  had  lived  at  the  home  of  her  hus- 
band's mother.  She  related  how  she  had  persistently 
refused  to  marry  Thaw  before  she  finally  did  so. 

''What  reason  did  you  give  him  for  not  marrying 
him?" 

' '  It  was  because  of  my  reputation.  I  did  not  want 
to  separate  him  from  his  family.  I  knew  it  would 
l)e  a  good  thing  for  me  to  marry  him,  but  it  would 
not  be  for  him.  It  was  because  I  loved  him  that  I 
would  not  marry.  If  I  did  not  love  him  so  much  I 
might  have  been  anxious  to  marry  him." 

Mr.  Delmas  got  the  witness  to  relate  how  she  met 
some  of  the  Thaw  family  in  Europe. 

"There  was  something  happened  which  led  you 
to  change  your  mind  in.  regard  to  marrying  Thaw?" 
asked  Mr.  Delmas. 

"Yes,"  answered  the  young  woman. 

"You  were  given  to  believe  that  his  family  would 
receive  you  as  his  wife?" 

''Yes.'' 

"Did  you  meet  ]\Irs.  Thaw,  his  mother,  in  New 
York." 

"I  did." 


A  TALE  OF  INTRIGUE  113 

** After  your  marriage  did  you  visit  New  York 
from  Pittsburg?" 

''We  did." 

''Did  you  tell  your  husband  of  the  efforts  of  Stan- 
ford White  to  renew  your  friendship?" 

"I  did." 

"What  was  the  first  occurrence  you  told  your  hus- 
band about?" 

"Once  when  I  was  driving  on  Fifth  avenue,  when 
I  passed  Mr.  White  and  he  called  out  to  me,  'Eve- 
lyn.' " 

''Did  you  tell  your  husband?" 

"I  did,  and  he  said  it  was  not  right  for  me  to  see 
him  and  made  me  promise  that  if  I  ever  met  White 
again  I  would  tell  him  about  it." 

"Did  you  tell  him?" 

"I  did." 

"When  did  you  see  Mr.  White  again?" 

"It  was  on  Fifth  avenue  one  day  when  I  was  riding 
to  Dr.  Delavan  to  have  my  throat  treated.  I  was  in 
a  hansom  and  Mr.  White  was  also  riding  in  a  han- 
som, too. 

"When  I  got  home  I  told  ^Mr.  Thaw  that  at  about 
Thirty-fourth  street  I  had  passed  ^Ir.  White,  both 
of  us  in  hansoms.  lie  did  not  attempt  to  speak  to 
me,  but  .stared  hard  at  me.  I  looked  away.  When 
I  got  down  to  the  doctor's  officii  I  found  Stanford 
White  in  his  hansom  coming  there,  I  ran  up  the 
steps,  but. I  was  excited  and  nervous  and  I  told  the 


114  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

door  porter  that  I  would  come  some  other  time,  so  I 
I'an  back  down  the  stairs,  jumped  into  my  hansom, 
looked  neither  to  the  right  nor  to  the  left,  and  told  the 
driver  to  go  back  to  the  Lorraine  as  quickly  as  ever 
he  could." 

''How  did  ]\rr.  Thaw  act  when  you  told  him  of 
IhisT' 

"Oh,  he  was  always  very  excited  whenever  I  told 
him  of  my  meetings  with  White.  He  bit  his  nails 
and  looked  excited." 

"Did  you  ever  tell  Mr.  Thaw  how  you  came  to  be 
sent  to  school  at  Pompton,  N.  J.,  and  if  so,  relate  it 
to  the  jury,  and  also  wherein  the  name  of  Jack  Bar- 
rymore  entered  into  the  discussion,  and  tell  what 
your  relations  to  Barrymore  were." 

"I  met  Mr.  Barrymore  when  I  was  with  the  'Wild 
Rose'  company  at  the  Knickerbocker  theater.  Mr. 
White  gave  a  dinner  to  a  whole  lot  of  friends.  I 
was  asked  to  attend  and  I  went  there  and  met  his 
friends  at  the  party.     Mr.  Barrymore  was  there." 

Mrs.  Thaw  privately  mentioned  the  names  of  the 
members  of  the  party  to  Mr.  Jerome.  She  said  that 
when  she  told  White  of  "Jack"  Barrymore 's  pro- 
posal he  became  very  angry  and  said  he  would  send 
her  away  to  school  to  New  Jersey.  She  continued 
to  detail  her  relations  ^'ith  Barrvmore,  and  her  be- 
iiig  sent  to  school. 

"It  all  came  about  through  a  {|uarrel  between  Mr. 
White,  my  mother  ami   iiiysclF  over  Mr.   Bnrrymore, 


A  TALE  OF  INTRIGUE  115 

continued  the  witneSvS.  One  afternoon  in  ]\Iadison 
Square  garden  ]\Ir.  Barrymore  said  to  me,  'Evelyn, 
will  you  marry  me?'  " 

Mrs.  Thaw  pronounced  the  name  with  a  long-  ''e." 

*'I  answered  him,  and  said,  'I  don't  know,'  "  she 
went  on. 

"White  asked  me  if  I  would  marry  Barrymore 
and  said,  'If  kids  like  you  get  married,  what  would 
you  have  to  live  on?" 

**  Every  day  after  that  when  I  would  meet  my 
mother  she  would  ask  me  if  I  intended  'to  marry  that 
little  pup  Barrymore,'  saying  ]\Ir.  White  was  afraid 
I  would. 

"Mr.  White  then  came  to  see  me  and  said  I  would 
be  very  foolish  to  marry  Mr.  Barrymore-.  we  would 
have  nothing  to  live  on,  would  probably  (juarrel  and 
get  a  divorce.  He  also  said  Mr.  Barr^-more  was  a 
little  bit  crazy,  that  his  father  was  in  an  asylum,  and 
he  thought  the  whole  family  was  touched.  lie  was 
certain  Mr.  Barrymore  would  be  crazy  in  a  few  years, 
and  for  that  reason  .said  I  ought  not  to  marry  him. 

"Mr.  Barrymore  asked  me  a  second  time  if  I  would 
marry  him,  and  again  I  said,  'I  don't  know,'  and 
hiughed.  The  upshot  of  the  whole  matter  was  that 
^Ii".  White  came  and  said  I  ought  to  be  sent  to  school, 
and  I  was." 

Mr.  Delmas  had  asked  ]\lrs.  Thaw  if  Thaw  had 
told  her  the  fate  of  other  girls  'at  the  hands  of  this 
man  White?' 

V  ■     • 


116  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Mr.  Jerome  objected  to  further  "defamation  be- 
ing thrown  on  the  dead,  who  have  no  chance  to  an- 
swer. The  state  is  not  permitted  to  controvert  the 
truth  of  a  single  statement  in  this  testimony,"  he 
added.  "Stanford  White  is  dead,  and  I  object  to 
this  question,  which  is  along  a  path  which  we  can  not 
follow." 

Mr.  Delmas  said  he  had  no  desire  to  besmirch  the 
name  of  the  dead.  He  was  introducing  letters  by 
Thaw  to  corroborate  the  question. 

Justice  Fitzgerald  said  he  thought  further  com- 
petent evidence  as  to  Thaw's  insanity  should  be  in- 
troduced before  further  testimony  along  the  day's 
line  was  taken. 

"We  are  ready  to  submit  the  proof,"  said  Mr. 
Delmas. 

The  line  of  examination  was  changed  and  iMrs. 
Thaw  was  asked  to  identify  more  letters. 

One  of  the  papers  Mrs.  Thaw  was  asked  to  identify 
was  Harry  Thaw's  will. 

The  old  saying,  "Nothing  but  good  of  the  dead," 
must  have  recurred  again  and  again  to  Mr.  Jerome 
as  the  slender  Evelyn  told  her  story.  It  is  a  good 
old  saying,  but  there  is  another:  "The  dead  are 
safe— let  us  take  care  of  the  living."  Jerome  strove 
to  protect  the  cold  and  unresponsive  dead.  Delmas 
tried  to  save  the  living,  and  the  fragile  little  model 
was  the  life-line  in  his  hands.  Evelyn  Nesbit's  story, 
as  she  told  it,  showed  new  and  curious  lights  and 
shadows  in  the  character  of  White.     One  thing  was 


Best  photograph  of 
DIST.   ATTORNEY  WILLIAM  TRAVERS  JEROME. 


A  TALE  OF  IXTRIGUE  119 

evident :  White,  onee  possessor  of  a  victim,  wished 
to  cling  to  that  victim  through  the  years.  Unlike 
nearly  all  other  men  of  similar  stamp,  he  did  not 
east  aside  his  playthings  when  wearied  of  them.  Pos- 
sibly he  had  been  like  other  men  in  this  regard — 
possibly  he  had  turned  from  many  another  victim 
in  the  past.  But  the  frail  and  pitiful  little  Evelyn 
seemed  to  have  enthralled  his  fancies,  conquered  his 
vagrant  passions.  All  his  thoughts  were  for  her,  and 
for  her  his  future  dreams.  He  lavished  his  bounty 
on  her,  and  he  strove  to  keep  her  from  all  other  men. 
The  story  of  Evelyn's  affair  with  Jack  Barrymore 
was  a  page  in  real  life  that  made  the  courtroom  crowd 
strain  its  eager  ears.  Barrymore,  young,  handsome, 
and  romantic,  had  appealed  to  the  girlish  mind  and 
eye.  The  burly  White,  with  his  50  years,  found  him- 
self fading  into  the  background.  lie  seized  an  op- 
portunity to  pose  as  "the  friend  of  the  family"  by 
discrediting  Barrymore  and  sending  the  little  girl  to 
school.  It  was  an  index  to  White's  soul— but  it 
showed  that  White,  at  least,  had  no  idea  of  parting 
from  or  wearying  of  his  victim. 

Wliat  had  Delmas  done? 

He  made  the  jurors  regard  Stanford  White  as  a 
fiend  whose  slaying  was  a  noble  deed. 

He  made  the  jurors  thrill  with  sympathy  for  the 
fragile,  pale-faced  little  Evelyn. 

He  showed  cause  enough  ten  times  over  for  the 
dethronement  of  reason  in  the  brain  of  Harry  Thaw. 
What  more  could  anv  lawyer  do? 


, CHAPTER     X. 
White  on  Verge  of  Arrest  When  Shot. 

REV.  ANTHONY  COMSTOCK,  THE  FAMOUS  REFORMER, 
TOLD  HOW  HARRY  THAW  HAD  HIRED  HIM  TO  GATHER 
EVIDENCE  AGAINST  ARCHITECT— PROOF  OF  ORGIES  IN 
MIRRORED  DEN  FOUND  BY  DETECTIVES— HARRY  WANTED 
TO  PREVENT  THE  MAN  FROM  SEIZING  IN  HIS  CLUTCHES 
OTHER  YOUNG  AND  INNOCENT  GIRLS  LIKE  EVELYN 
NESBIT— CASE  OF  CHILD  ONLY  15  YEARS  OLD  LIKE 
MRS.  thaw's— HUSBAND  MADE  DESPERATE— ATTOR- 
NEY DELMAS  TELLS  HOW  EVELYN 's  STORY  SHOCKED 
HIM  — GREATER   DISCLOSURES   AHEAD. 

Another  blow  to  the  prosecution,  almost  as  great 
as  that  dealt  by  Evelyn  in  her  testimony,  came  when 
Jerome  learned  that  Thaw  held  in  reserve  the  start- 
ling story  of  Stanford  White's  entire  past,  and  was 
ready  to  produce  it  at  any  moment.  Anthony  Com- 
stock,  famous  head  of  the  Society  for  the  Prevention 

of  Crime,  had  the  documents.  Mr.  Comstoek  pre- 
pared a  statement  for  the  defense,  part  of  which 
is  substantially  as  follows  : 

"I  know  that  much  of  what  Mrs.  Harry  Thaw 
has  stated  on  the  witness  stand  is  true.  I  know 
that  Stanford  White's  den  in  the  tower  of  Madison 
Square  garden  was  arrang^ed  as  she  described  it» 
and  that  it  was  the  scene  of  revelries.  I  know  of  at 

120 


WHITE  NEAR  ARREST  121 

least  one  specific  iastance.  And  what  I  know  I 
learned  after  I  had  been  given  the  first  clews  by 
Harry  Kendall  Thaw  himself. 

"My  first  knowledge  of  this  case  dates  from  the 
summer  of  1905— about  a  year  before  the  killing,  I 
should  sav.     One  afternoon  a  tall,  well-dressed,  well- 

t/  7  7 

bred  young  man.  came  to  me  in  my  office  in  the  Tem- 
ple Bar  building.  He  seemed  to  be  laboring  under 
excitement,  and  it  was  evident  that  he  was  desper- 
ately in  earnest.  He  opened  the  conversation  by 
asking  me  if  I  were  interested  in  the  suppression  of 
vice.  Then  he  wanted  to  know  if  my  society  gave 
special  attention  to  the  arrest  and  punishment  of  men 
who  preyed  upon  young  girls.  I  told  him  that  we 
did.  He  jumped  up  abruptly,  said  he  would  see  me 
again,  and  left  without  telling  me  his  name.  At  the 
door  he  stopped  long  enough  to  say  he  would  see  me 
again. 

''A  few  days  later  he  came  back,  still  laboring 
under  strong  emotion.  He  then  introduced  himself. 
As  nearly  as  I  can  recall  he  said : 

"  '  I  am  Harry  Kendall  Thaw  of  Pittsburg.  I  want 
to  tell  you  of  a  man  who  has  betrayed  more  young 
girls  than  any  other  man  in  New  York.  He  is  par- 
ticularly given  to  pursuing  the  young  girls  of  the 
stage.  It  is  a  debt  which  society  owes  to  itself  to 
halt  him  now,  before  he  brings  shame  and  sorrow  to 
any  more  victims.' 

That  in  effect  was  his  statement,"  continued  Mr. 


<  < 


122  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Comstock,  ''although  of  course  I  asked  him  a  great 
deal  more  of  the  matter.  He  left  after  securing  my 
promise  to  investigate.  He  agreed  to  pay  the  cost 
of  looking"  into  the  case.  He  at  once  mailed  me  a 
check  of  sufficient  size  to  defray  tlie  necessary  ex- 
penses, and  subsequently  wrote  me  several  times 
upon  the  subject  of  White,  asking  each  time  what 
progress  we  were  making. 

''Our  investigation,  confirmed  to  a  great  degree 
what  Thaw  had  told  me.  Our  detectives  were  as- 
tounded at  what  they  discovered.  We  worked  hard 
and  I  learned  a  great  deal,  but  of  all  cases  these  are 
the  hardest  to  prove  under  the  rules  of  evidence, 
and  before  risking  an  arrest  I  determined  to  catch 
White. 

"I  learned  that  his  rooms  in  the  tower  were  as 
Mrs.  Evelyn  Thaw  had  described  them  in  the  trial. 
Two  of  our  detectives  endeavored  to  hire  rooms  in 
the  same  tower  in  order  to  watch  his  goings  and 
comings.  The  deal  was  almost  completed  when  one 
of  the  detectives  made  a  bungle.  Something  Avliich 
he  sjiid  or  did  gave  the  alarm  to  the  janitor,  and, 
although  we  were  on  the  waiting  list  for  a  long  time, 
and  although  several  times  apartments  in  the  tower 
were  vacant,  we  were  never  able  to  secure  a  suite  or 
a  single  room. 

"We  were  still  vainly  trying  to  arrange  a  trap  for 
White  from  which  there  would  be  no  escape  when  he 
dismantled  his  room  in  the  tower. 


"WHITE  SEAR  ARREST  123 

'*I  learned  positively  of  one  ease  of  White's  con- 
duct to  a  airl  only  15  years  old  almost  identically  as 
Mrs.  Evelyn  Thaw  describes  her  own  case,  but  the 
girl  was  in  the  chorus  of  a  road  company,  and  we 
could  not  reach  her  and  make  a  witness  of  her.  We 
got  evidence  of  other  things— things  that  convince  me 
that  what  Harry  Thaw's  wife  now  swears  is  true.  I 
])('lieve  in  her  story  and  base  that  belief  upon  what 
1  Imow  of  the  man. 

"The  last  time  I  saw  Harry  Thaw  was  only  two 
or  three  weeks  before  he  shot  White.  He  appeared 
to  be  in  a  desperate  state — like  a  man  who  is  well- 
nigh  frantic.  He  said  to  me  wildly:  *You  must  keep 
on,  you  must  stop  this  man,  he  must  be  stopped  now 
—at  once." 

The  defense,  on  the  same  day  that  it  secured  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Comstock's  statement,  made  another  sen- 
sational discovery.  It  obtained  proof  that  the  day 
after  the  shooting  of  White,  the  police  searched  the 
studio  of  White  and  discovered  evidence  that  showed 
that  Evelyn  Nesbit  was  not  the  only  young  girl  wlio 
had  been  lured  into  the  ^ladison  Square  Garden  mir- 
rored-room  within  a  few  months. 

In  the  room  "with  mirrors  to  left  and  to  right,  in 
the  ceiling  and  on  the  floor,''  in  securely  locked 
drawers  built  into  the  walls,  the  police  found  this  evi- 
dence. That  such  a  den  of  vice  could  have  existed  in 
the  very  heart  of  the  great  metropolis  seems  well  niuh 
incredible.      That   such   practices   could    have    betitn 


124  THE  GBEAT  THAV^  CASE 

known  by  men  of  social  standino-^  and  without  pro- 
test, is  past  belief. 

Speaking  after  this  discovery,  Attorney  Delmas 
was  confident  of  the  acquittal  of  Thaw. 

"Before  we  put  Evelyn  on  the  stand,"  he  said,  ''I 
heard  her  story  but  once.  There  was  no  rehearsal 
no  attempt  at  dramatic  play." 

"The  storv  as  she  told  it  in  court  was  not  half  as 
dramatic  as  it  was  w^hen.  she  told  it  to  me  during  our 
preparation  of  the  case. 

"Only  once  in  my  life  have  I  been  so  touched  with 
emotion  as  I  was  when  Evelyn  Xesbit  first  told  me 
her  story.    That  was  at  the  burial  of  my  father. 

"As  I  sat  there  as  a  lawyer  listening  to  the  girl 
narrating  the  story  of  what  she  had  suffered  at  the 
hands  of  Stanford  White,  the  tears  welled  into  my 
eyes  and  I  fairly  sobbed. 

"She  told  me  then  that  when  she  awoke  and  found 
Stanford  White  was  alone  with  her  in  that  mirrored 
bedroom  he  seemed  to  her  like  a  big  gorilla. 

"His  hair  was  disheveled,  and  the  look  in  his  face 
was  like  an  animal.  'I  screamed  with  terror,'  she 
told  me.  She  added  many  details,  which,  if  she  had 
told  the  jury,  there  would  have  been  no  need  on  her 
part  to  produce  further  evidence— as  we  had  not  re- 
hearsed our  part,  I  depended  simply  on  her  memory 
as  to  facts.  The  presence  of  th.^  crowded  courtroom 
disconcerted  her  to  the  extent  that  she  omitted  some 
of  the  most  revolting  features  of  that  fatal  night." 


EVELYN   NESBIT,  AS  "THE  SUNBONNET  CHILD" 

Picture  taken  just  Ijefore  she  met  Stanford  White. 


I 


CHAPTER     XI. 

Harry  Thaw's  Startling  Will  Disclosed  Fear  of 

Assassination. 

DOCUMENT,  INTRODUCED  IN  EVIDENCE  AFTER  A  BITTER 
LEGAL  FIGHT,  PROVIDED  $50,000  OR  MORE  AS  A  FUND 
FOR  THE  HUNTING  DOWN  AND  PUNISHMENT  OF  ANY 
PERSON  WHO  MIGHT  ASSASSINATE  HIM— $75,000  LEFT 
TO  CARE  FOR  YOUNG  GIRLS  WHO  WERE  RUINED  BY  A 
BAND  OF  DISSOLUTE  MILLIONAIRES  LIKE  WHITE  — 
MONEY  FOR  MRS.  HOLMAN,  WIFE^S  MOTHER,  AND  FOR 
HOWARD  NESBIT— DOCUMENT  ALLEGED  TO  PROVE  THE 
SLAYER  INSANE— YOUNG  MILLIONAIRE  THOl^GHT  OF 
NOTHING  BUT  WIFE's  WRONGS— PUT  DETECTIVES  ON 
white's  STRACK. 

Th(^  day  Evelyn  Xesbit  Thaw  resumed  the  stand 
was  a  pitiful  one  for  her  husband.  Harry  Thaw  was 
celebrating  his  thirty-sixth  birthday— celebrating  it 
in  a  pris!;n  cell,  with  the  memory  of  his  wife's  shame, 
told  on  the  stand,  rankling  in  his  mind. 

''Be  of  good  cheer,"  were  the  only  words  Thaw 
heard  addressed  to  him  by  his  wife  that  day,  "eveiy- 
body  snys  you  will  be  acquitted  on  the  first  ballot." 

]\[rs.  Thaw  was  accompanied  in  court  by  her  chorus 
girl  friend  and  chum,  May  McKenzie,  and  by  anoth(M' 
close  friend,  ^Ir.s.  J.  J.  Caine  of  Boston.  ^Trs.  Thaw 
lieai-d  Dr.  Bi'itton  D.  P^vans,  a  noted  alienist,  testify 

127 


EVELYN   NESBIT 
-t  age  of  twelve  years. 


FEARED  ASSASSINATION  129 

that  he  had  made  three  separate  examinations  of  her 
husband  shortly  after  the  murder,  and  on  each  oc- 
casion found  him  insane.     He  swore : 

"Thaw  exhibited  delusions  of  a  personal  character, 
an  exaggerated  ego,  and,  along  with  them  delusions 
of  a  persecutory  character.  He  thought  himself  of 
exaggerated  importance  and  believed  himself  perse- 
cuted by  a  number  of  persons.'' 

By  an  "exaggerated  ego,"  Dr.  Evans  said  he 
meant  "a  disproportionate  idea  of  importance  of  self, 
a  belief  that  one  is  clothed  with  powers,  capacity  and 
abilit}'  far  above  normal  or  above  those  actually  pos- 
sessed." 

These  symptoms,  he  said,  were  characteristic  of 
S'veral  mental  diseases. 

One  of  the  mental  diseases  indicated  by  Thaw's 
actions,  Dr.  Evans  declared,  is  known  as  adolescent 
insanity.  It  is  characteristic  of  the  development 
period  of  life— from  10  to  40  years.  The  person  thus 
afflicted  is  known  as  having  a  psychopathic  taint,  a 
predisposition  to  mental  unsoundness,  the  result  of 
heredity. 

The  death  of  the  wife  of  Joseph  B.  Bolton,  who 
succumbed  to  pneumonia,  delayed  the  trial  for  three 
days  after  Dr.  Wagner's  testimony,  and  for  a  time, 
grave  fears  that  a  new  trial  would  be  necessary,  were 
expressed.  The  day  after  the  funeral,  however,  the 
juror  resumed  his  duties.  Up  to  this  point  the  de- 
fense had  expended  $1,000,000  on  the  trial,  and  the 


130  TEE  GREAT  THA^V  CASE 

state  had  paid  out  $250,000.  If  Juror  Bolton  had 
been  incapacitated  by  his  wife's  death,  all  this  ex- 
pense would  have  been  useless. 

When  the  failure  of  the  trial  was  feared,  Mrs. 
Thaw  sought  to  cheer  her  husband.  Perhaps  her 
woman's  wit  had  warned  her  that  she  must  look  her 
prettiest,  for  on  her  visit  to  the  Tombs  prison  she 
wore  for  the  first  time  a  new  and  modish  little  broAvn 
frock,  its  coat  set  off  with  jaunty  silk  fixings.  She 
was  radiant  and  smiling  as  she  jumped  out  of  her 
cab  and  ran  up  the  steps  to  the  iron  gates  of  the 
Tombs. 

As  she  waited  to  be  taken  to  her  husband,  a  jail 
guard  showed  her  a  message  which  had  come  in  the 
mail  for  her  husband.  It  was  a  postal  card,  a  picture 
of  a  bunch  of  violets,  bearing  in  a  childish  hand  this 
inscription : 

"Dear  Mr.  Thaw:  T  am  a  little  Baltimore  girl. 
I  send  you  this  r.s  a  token  <  f  my  sympathy.     Yours, 

''Lulu  Bell.'' 

The  wife's  face  dimpled  with  pleasure.  "Isn't 
tliat  sweet?"  she  said.  "I  know  Hariy  will  appre- 
ciate it." 

Dr.    Charles   Wagner,   the   alienist,    who   took   the 
s'.and   when   the  trial   was   resumed,   declared   there 
could  be  not  the  slightest  doubt  that  Thaw  was  in- 
sane at  the  time  of  the  shooting,  and  told  the  jury 
tliat  ITarry  had  declared  a  "sudden  impulse"  made 
him  slav  AVhite. 


FEARED  ASSASSINATION  131 

"Mr.  Thaw  said  in  his  conversation  with  me,"  as- 
serted the  witness,  "that  he  had  no  idea  of  killing- 
White  up  to  the  very  time  he  shot  him.  Thaw  said 
his  sole  purpose  had  been  to  get  evidence  against 
White  to  send  him  to  the  penitentiary  for  his  offenses 
against  young  women. 

"White,  declared  Thaw,  made  a  practice  of  his 
sins  against  girls,  to  pick  out  young  women  who  had 
a  disposition  toward  morality  rather  than  toAvard 
girls  with  an  inclination  toward  immorality. 

"Thaw  told  me,"  said  Dr.  Wagner,  "that  White 
did  not  hesitate  to  use  drugs  or  employ  physical 
force  to  accomplish  his  evil  purposes. 

Mr.  Jerome  protested  at  "thus  attacking  the  name 
of  the  dead,"  but  in  vain,  and  the  doctor  resumed : 

"Thaw  constantly  referred  to  W^hite  as  'this  man, 
this  creature,  the  beast,  the  blackguard/  and  said 
the  man  had  sought  to  pollute  every  pure  minded 
woman  who  came  within  the  sphere  of  his  ob-;erv- 
at!on. 

"  'I  tried  to  save  them.'  ^Iv.  Thaw  said  to  us,  and 
added,  'I  did  all  in  my  power,  I  never  wanted  to 
shoot  the  creature.  I  never  wanted  to  kill  him.  1 
knew  he  was  a  foul  creature,  destroying  all  the  moth- 
ers and  daughters  in  America,  but  I  wanted  through 
legal  means  to  bring  him  to  trial.  I  wanted  to  get 
him  into  court  so  he  would  be  brought  to  justice.' 

"I  then  asked  him  why  under  such  circumstances 
he  had  shot  Mr.  White. 


132  THE  GBEAT  THAW  CASE 

'^  'Providence  took  charge  of  it,'  he  replied.  'This 
was  an  act  of  Providence.  For  my  part  I  would 
rather  have  had  him  suffer  in  court  the  humiliation, 
the  revelation  of  his  acts  would  have  caused. '  ' ' 

"Did  he  tell  you  w^iat  he  had  done,  if  anything, 
to  bring  "White  into  court?"  asked  Mr.  Delmas. 

"Pie  said  he  had  gone  to  see  Anthony  Comstock, 
District  Attorney  Jerome  and  a  private  detective 
agency.  He  said  Mr.  Jerome  had  told  him  he  had 
better  let  the  matter  drop ;  that  there  was  nothing  to 
it.  The  detectives  told  him  they  would  take  the  mat- 
ter up,  but  they  had  not  submitted  a  proper  report. 
As  to  Mr.  Comstock,  he  said,  he  discovered  that  De- 
lancey  Nicoll,  an  attorney,  w^as  acting  as  legal  ad- 
viser both  to  White  and  to  Comstock.  He  regarded 
this  as  another  link  in  the  conspiracy  against  him. 

"I  asked  him  why  he  carried  a  pistol,  and  he  said 
that  Roger  O'Mara,  a  Pittsburg  detective,  had  ad- 
vised him  to  do  so  after  he  had  told  O'Mara  that  on 
several  occasions  thugs  had  jostled  him  in  an  attempt 
to  get  him  into  a  street  brawl.  He  said  these  thugs 
Avere  the  hired  agents  of  Stanford  White,  who  did 
not  want  to  take  the  responsibility  and  danger  of 
making  a  personal  attack.  He  said  White  had  hired 
the  ]\Ionk  Eastman  gang  to  get  him  into  a  quarrel 
and  beat  or  kick  him  to  death." 

After  these  astounding  statements,  to  which  the 
jury  listened  eagerly,  the  bailiff  cried: 

"Mrs.  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw  to  the  Stand!" 

A  thrill  ran  round  the  court. 


MAY    McKENZIE 
Beautiful  actress  friend  of  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw. 


FEARED  ASSASSINATION  135 

]\Irs.  Thaw  looked  pale  and  serious  as  she  took  her 
place  on  the  stand.  She  appeared  in  the  same  simple 
grirlish  costume  that  she  had  worn  every  day  since  the 
trial  begran.  She  smiled  slightly  as  she  caught  her 
husband's  eye.  Thaw  returned  the  smile,  and  then 
turned  to  Attorney  O'Reilly,  with  whom  he  talked 
for  a  minute  excitedly.  Then  he  kept  his  eyes  fixed 
on  his  wife's  face. 

After  Mrs.  TImw  had  sat  in  the  witness  chair  for 
nearly  five  minutes,  Mr.  Delmas  began  his  examina- 
tion. 

"You  have  already  testified,  ]\Irs.  Thaw,  that  you 
are  familiar  with  the  handwriting  of  Stanford 
White,"  said  the  attorney.  "I  now  hand  you  a  paper 
and  ask  if  from  beginning  to  end  it  is  in  the  hand- 
writing of  :\rr.  White?" 

Mrs.  Thaw  gazed  at  the  paper,  evidently  a  letter, 
and  said : 

"It  is  his  handwriting." 

Letter  hy  letter,  ]\Irs.  Thaw  id(^ntified  forty-two 
missives  written  by  the  architect. 

As  the  examination  of  the  letters  was  concluded 
Mr.  Delmas  turned  to  the  witness. 

"How  long  have  you  known  May  McKenzie?" 

"Since  1901." 

"How  long  has  Mr.  Thaw  known  her?" 

"Since  1904." 

"Did  you  in  May.  1906,  relate  to  Mr.  Thaw  a  con- 
versation you  had  with  ^lay  ]McKenzie  especially  with 


136  TEE  GREAT  THA^Y  CASE 

reference  to  what  she  said  to  you  regarding  Stnnfor<l 
White?" 

"^lay  McKenzie  told  me,"  said  Mrs.  Thaw,  ''Stan- 
ford White  had  been  to  see  her  and  that  she  had  told 
hini  that  Harry  and  I  were  getting  along  finely  to- 
gether. She  said  she  thought  it  was  so  nice  the  way 
we  loved  each  other. 

*'She  said  Stanford  White  had  remarked:  'Pooh, 
it  won't  last.    I  will  get  her  back.'  " 

"Did  Mr.  Thaw  say  anything  when  you  told  him 
this?" 

"He  said  he  had  already  heard  it  from  Miss  Mc- 
Kenzie. ' ' 

"What  was  his  condition  when  you  told  him?" 

"The  way  he  always  was  when  on  the  subject  of 
Stanford  White." 

"How  was  that?" 

"Very  excited  and  nervous." 

"You  had  a  second  operation  in  1905,  did  you 
not?" 

"Yes." 

"Who  made  the  arrangements  for  it  and  paid  the 
cost?" 

"Harry  K.  Thaw." 

' '  How  much  was  the  bill  ? ' ' 

"In  all  about  $3,000.  The  operation  itself  was 
$1,000." 

The  nature  of  the  operation  was  not  gone  into. 
Did  ^Ir.   Thaw  have  any  conversation  with  the 


<  < 


FEARED  ASSASSINATION  137 

attending    physician    at    that    time    regarding    your 
previous  relations  with  White?" 

*'No,  sir;  not  in  my  presence." 

''Did  Mr.  Thaw  at  the  time  of  your  marriage  and 
subsequent  thereto  talk  very  much  about  the  incident 
in  your  life  connected  with  White?" 

"Yes.  He  always  talked  about  it.  He  would 
waken  me  often  at  night,  sobbing.  And  then  he 
would  constantly  ask  me  questions  about  the  details 
of  this  terrible  thing."  • 

"Did  you  visit  May  McKenzie  at  her  apartments 
in  1904?" 

"Yes;  she  was  ill  and  sent  me  a  letter  to  come  to 
see  her." 

"While  you  were  there  did  Stanford  White  come 
in?" 

"Yes." 

"Did  you  tell  Mr.  Thaw  of  anything  that  then  oc- 
curred ? ' ' 

"Yes.  Stanford  White  spoke  to  me  several  times 
and  I  always  answered  'yes'  or  'no.*  He  then  came 
over  and  started  to  straighten  a  bow  on  my  hair.  My 
hair  was  short,  having  been  cut  oft*  at  the  time  of  my 
first  operation.  Then  Stanford  White  tried  to  put 
his  arms  around  me,  and  wanted  me  to  sit  beside  him 
on  the  bed.    I  told  him  to  let  me  alone." 

Mrs.  Thaw  said  that  Harry  Thaw  always  at- 
tributed her  ill  health,  the  necessity  of  the  second 
operation,  etc.,  to  White.    She  also  testified  that  Thaw 


138  THE  GEE  AT  THA^Y  CASE 

had  told  her  he  was  going  to  take  up  White's  affairs 
with  Anthony  Comstock. 

"I  told  him  it  would  do  no  good/'  she  added: 
''that  White  had  many  influential  friends  and  that 
l:e  could  stop  it.  I  told  him  that  lots  of  people  would 
not  believe  the  things  about  White  on  account  of  his 
personality. ' ' 

Harry  had  begun  to  weep  w^hen  his  wife  told  of  the 
operations,  and  continued  to  sob  bitterly. 

"Did  you  and  Mr.  Thaw  discuss  the  fate  of  other 
young  women  at  the  hands  of  Stanford  White  and 
did  you  tell  him  certain  names?" 

Mr.  Jerome  objected. 

IVIr.  Delmas  put  another  question: 

"Did  you  and  Mr.  Thaw  discuss  the  fate  of  the 
'pie  girl r" 

"Yes,  sir.  It  was  in  Paris  in  1903.  He  asked  me 
what  other  girls  I  knew  of  who  had  suffered  at  the 
hands  of  White.  I  told  him  I  had  heard  of  the  'pie 
girl,'  whose  name  was  known  to  both  of  us.  A  girl 
at  the  theater  had  told  me  about  it  and  that  night 
when  White  came  to  my  dressing-room  I  asked  him 
about  it.  He  asked  me  where  I  had  heard  the  story. 
I  told  him  a  girl  had  told  me.  Then  he  told  me  all 
about  it. 

"There  was  a  stag  dinner,  he  said,  and  the  girl  was 
X)ut  in  a  big  pie  with  a  lot  of  birds.  She  was  very 
young— about  15  years,  I  think  he  said.  He  also  told 
iiic  tliat  the  girl  had  a  beautiful  figure  and  wore  only 


FEARED  ASSASSINATION  139 

a  gauze  dress.  He  helped  put  her  in  the  pie  and  fix 
it,  and  .said  it  was  the  best  stunt  he  ever  saw  at  a 
dinner.  When  the  girl  jumped  out  of  the  pie  the 
birds  flew  all  about  the  room. 

"  'But  I  came  near  getting  into  trouble  about  it/ 
he  said.  *  We  put  gold  pieces  in  the  girl 's  shoes-  and 
in  her  dress  and  a  lot  of  people  heard  of  it.  All  the 
newspapers  got  hold  of  it.  I  stopped  it  at  all  the 
newspapers  but  one,  but  I  could  not  stop  it  there.  I 
got  a  friend  to  go  see  them,  though,  and  we  finally  got 
them  to  stop  it,  too.  We  kept  it  out  of  the  papers, 
but  it  was  close.'  " 

"I  told  ]\rr.  White  I  had  heard  he  ruined  the  girl 
that  night,  but  he  only  laughed." 

The  names  of  other  girls  ruined  by  White  were 
whispered  by^  ]\Irs.  Thaw  to  Jerome,  but  not  made 
public. 

''When  did  Mr.  Thaw  next  talk  to  you  about  such 
cases?"  asked  Del  mas. 

"The  next  time  was  in  Pittsburg,  when  we  were 
married.  lie  told  me  that  the  girl  was  dead.  He  said 
he  had  investigated  the  story  and  that  it  was  true; 
that  afterward  the  girl  married,  but  her  husband 
heard  the  story  of  her  connection  with  ^Mr.  White 
and  that  he  cast  her  off  and  she  died  in  great  poverty 
and  disgrace." 

Did   you  and   Mr.   Thaw   often   speak   of   these 


( ( 


Yes,  there  was  a  constant  conversation.     I  could 


140  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

not  possibly  tell  you  every  place  and  every  time  we 
discussed  it.  He  told  me  something  ought  to  be  done 
about  the  girls.  I  told  him  I  could  not  do  anything. 
He  then  said  I  could  help  him.  I  tried  to  get  his 
mind  on  other  things  and  then  he  would  say  I  was 
trying  to  get  out  of  it.  He  said  White  ought  to  be  in 
the  penitentiar}^ ;  that  he  got  worse  and  worse  all 
the  time  and  something  had  to  be  done." 

This  closed  the  direct  examination,  and  Mr.  Delmas 
then  read  a  letter  from  Harry  Thaw  to  Anthony 
Comstock,  the  foe  of  vice  in  New  York.  In  it  Thaw 
described  the  studio  in  the  Madison  Square  tower, 
and  said  it  was  filled  Avith  obscene  pictures,  and 
should  be  raided.  He  also  described  the  studio  at  22 
West  Twenty-fourth  street,  which  he  said  was  ''con- 
secrated to  debauchery"  and  was  used  by  ''a  gang 
of  rich  criminals."  He  described  the  studio  and  said 
in  it  there  were  many  indecent  pictures. 

In  this  building,  the  letter  said,  were  the  famous 
red  velvet  swing  and  the  mirrored  bedroom.  He  in- 
closed a  sketch  of  the  arrangements  of  the  rooms. 
"Workmen  on  the  outside  of  the  building,"  says  the 
letter,  ''have  frequently  heard  the  screams  of  young 
girls  from  this  building." 

The  letter  continued  that  the  place  was  run  by 
"rich  criminals,"  but  was  frequentl}^  visited  by 
young  men  who  did  not  know  its  character.  The  let- 
ter said  that  the  place  had  been  partly  dismantled 
three  years  ago. 


FEARED  ASSASSINATION  141 

The  letter  called  attention  to  still  another  house, 
saying : 

*'You  may  also  abolish  another  place  at  122  East 
Twenty-second  street — a  house  used  secretly  by  three 
or  four  of  the  same  scoundrels. 

Mr.  Delmas  then  asked  permission  to  recall  Mrs. 
Thaw  for  one  more  question — a  startling  one.  Mrs. 
Thaw  blushed  violently  and  said  in  reply  that  White 
was  a  monster  given  to  such  practices  that  they 
would  not  bear  repetition. 

Evelyn  Thaw,  when  first  she  told  her  story  of  al- 
leged wrongs  at  the  hand  of  the  dead  architect,  did 
not  falter  in  details  as  to  the  approximate  time  and 
circumstances. 

'X'ounsel  for  the  defense,"  said  the  attorney,  in 
speaking  of  the  progress,  "are  greatly  pleased  with 
^Irs.  Thaw  and  her  testimony.  What  pleases  us  most 
is  that  she  followed  the  instructions  given  her,  which 
•were  that  she  should  tell  the  truth,  no  matter  what 
question  was  asked  her.  AVe  told  her  she  was  not  to 
consider  the  effect  upon  herself  or  the  defendant,  but 
to  tell  the  truth  bluntly  and  without  consideration  of 
the  consequences." 


CHAPTER     XII. 

The  Hidden  Witness  to  the  Proposal. 

MRS.  CAINE  TELLS  HOW  HARRY  THAW  OFFERED  EVELYN 'S 
MOTHER  A  VAST  AMOUNT  OF  CASH  FOR  HER  HAND— 
EVELYN  RECALLED  TO  THE  STAND  — TELLS  OF  POSING 
IN  STUDIOS— ANOTHER  DAY  OF  TORTURE— THE  VISIT 
TO  THE  ''dead  rat ^'— MRS.  THAW  IN  TEARS— HUS- 
BAND WEEPS  WHEN  SHE  IS  FORCED  TO  TELL  HOW  SHE 
WAS  FOUND  BY  A  VISITOR  TO  WHITE 's  STUDIO— AD. 
MITS  SHE  VISITED  HIM  OFTEN  AFTER  THE  ''mIRROREE 
studio"  INCIDENT— ALMOST  FAINTS  ON  STAND— 
HUSBAND  IN  TEARS— EVELYN  IN  DELIRIUM  AFTER  THE 
ORDEAL. 

The  next  sensation  in  the  trial  came  when  Mrs. 
J.  J.  Caine,  of  Boston,  a  close  friend  of  Evelyn  Nesbit 
and  her  mother,  Mrs.  llolman,  testified  that  Harry 
Thaw  pleaded  with  Evelyn's  mother  for  her  hand  in 
marriage.  The  scene  which  she  dramatically  de- 
scribed, occurred  in  New  York,  in  1903.  Mrs.  llol- 
man was  entertaining  ^Irs.  Caine  in  her  apartments 
at  the  time  and  when  the  yonno-  millionaire  called, 
.Mrs.  Caine  concealed  herself  in  a  bathroom  where  she 
overheard  all  that  took  place. 

]\Trs.  Caine  testified  as  follows: 

'* Harry  Thaw  entered  the  room  excitedly  and  at 
once   told   Mrs.    Holman   that   he   wantcl    to   marry 

142 


THE  RIDDEN  WITNESS  143 

Evelyn.  He  told  the  mother  of  his  desire  to  send  the 
girl  to  Europe  and  said  if  she  would  marry  him  he 
would  settle  enough  on  the  mother  and  her  son,  How- 
ard Nesbit,  to  keep  them  in  comfort  during  their  en- 
tire lives.  (Later  testimony  indicated  this  amount 
was  $200,000.) 

Evelyn's  mother  said  she  would  try  to  fix  it  so  the 
seventeen-year-old  girl  would  accept  him.  ^h\  Thaw 
did  not  stay  long,  and  when  he  left,  Evelyn's  mother 
said,  "Now  you  see  his  intentions  are  honorable." 

Thaw  had  never  before  known  his  conversation 
was  overheard  by  an  eavesdropper  who  would  stand 
him  in  such  good  stead. 

After  ]\Irs.  Caine  left  the  stand  ]\Irs.  Evelyn  Thaw 
was  recalled  for  cross  examination.  For  hours  she 
sat  before  the  merciless  Jerome  under  a  scatliing 
cross  fire  of  (juestions.  Traps  were  laid  and  sprung, 
c{ueries  were  hurled  in  volleys  to  carry  her  off  her 
feet  and  overwhelm  her  in  a  tangle  of  contradictions, 
but  all  in  vain;  the  mere  slip  of  a  girl  met  the  skilled 
prosecutor  with  a  calm  and  effective  resistance. 

Jerome's  first  step  was  to  try  to  prove  that  Evelyn 
had  posed  in  the  nude.  He  first  showed  her  a  photo- 
uraph  of  herself  taken  in  1904.  It  showed  Evelyn  in 
a  kimono— the  famous  one  given  her  by  Stanford 
White.  There  was  nothing  offensive  in  the  pose  as 
disclosed  by  a  view  of  the  picture. 

Mr.  Jerome  by  his  next  few  questions  indicated 
that  he  did  not  intend  to  spare  the  feelings  of  the 


144  TEE  GEE  AT  THAW  CASE 

young  woman  in  any  way.  He  interrogated  her 
shari:)ly  as  to  the  details  of  her  dress  when,  she  was 
posing  for  artists  in  Philadelphia  and  New  York, 
seeking  to  learn  whether  she  posed  in  ''the  alto- 
gether" or  partially  draped.  The  prosecutor  per- 
sisted in  certain  questions  even  after  Mr.  Delmas  had 
objected,  and  insisted  on  having  definite  answers, 
though  ]\Irs.  Thaw  usually  said  she  could  not  exactly 
remember. 

"Was  there  any  exposure  of  the  person  or  did  you 
wear  the  so-called  artistic  draperies?" 

"I  would  not  say  that,"  replied  the  witness.  "I 
posed  in  a  Greek  dress  and  a  Turkish  costume. '  * 

Jerome  questioned  her  especially  as  to  her  posing 
in  New  York,  asking  whether  she  had  ever  been  pho- 
tographed or  painted  with  her  person  exposed.  She 
answered  positively  that  she  had  never  posed  in  such 
a  condition. 

"You  are  certain  you  never  posed  for  a  painting 
or  photograph  in  such  a  manner?"  asked  Jerome. 

"I  never  did — I  always  posed  with  clothes  on." 
She  moved  her  hands  from  her  throat  to  her  waist 
and  said:  "Do  you  mean  without  anything  on  here? 
I  have  posed  in  low-neck,  but  never,  never  like  that." 

Then  ]\Irs.  Thaw  told  how  she  Avon  her  New  York 
reputation  as  a  model.  She  sent  a  picture  of  herself, 
under  the  name  of  Florence  Evelyn  to  a  New  York 
magazine  and  soon  ^was  besieged  by  artists.  Her 
mother  aided  her  in  her  search  for  work. 


L 


v 


'I 


'  -**t. 


•w 


% 


N* 


■7P      /|i 


s 

:.:,    f 


^'j 


!  JU*1 


Jerome  cross-examining  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw. 


TEE  HIDDEN  WITNESS  147 


(  c 


Is  it  not  true,"  went  on  Mr.  Jerome,  reading 
from  a  paper,  ''that  in  the  spring  of  1901,  so  far  as 
your  relations  with  your  mother  were  concerned,  that 
you  were  getting  unruly,  that  your  mother  still  stuck 
by  you,  that  a  married  man " 

At  this  point  Mr.  Delmas  interposed  an  objection 
to  Mr.  Jergme  reading  from  what  he  termed  a  state- 
ment by  Evelyn  Thaw's  mother. 

"If  the  district  attorney  wants  the  mother's  testi- 
mony in  he  should  produce  her  on  the  stand,"  he 
said.  , 

"I'd  like  to,  but  you  know  that  it  is  impossible. 
You  know  w^here  she  is,"  said  Mr.  Jerome. 

The  question  regarding  Evelyn  becoming  unruly 
was  allow^ed  to  stand. 

"No,"  she  answered  decidedlv. 

"Is  it  not  true  that  that  married  man  was  James 
A.  Garland,  and  that  he  was  getting  a  divorce,  and 
that  you  and  your  mother  frequently  quarreled  about 
him?" 

"No,  indeed."  Mrs.  Thaw  drew  herself  up  india-- 
nantly  and  stamped  her  foot. 

"Is  it  not  true  that  you  went  alone  with  him  on  the 
yacht?" 

"Mamma  and  I,  yes." 

"Were  you  made  a  corespondent  in  Mr.  Garland's 
divorce  suit?" 

Mr.  Delmas  objected.  The  record,  he  said,  was  the 
])est  evidence. 


148  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

The  question  of  photographs  was  resumed.  Jerome 
asked : 

"During-  this  time  did  you  ever  pose  for  an  artist 
in  the  nude?'* 

''Never/' 

''Ever  have  any  easts  made  in  the  nude?" 

"No." 

"Did  you  not  in  the  spring  of  1901  have  such  a 
cast  made?" 

"No." 

"Do  you  know  Mr.  Wells,  sculptor?" 

"No." 

' '  Ever  heard  of  him  ? ' ' 

' '  Never. '  * 

"How  long  did  you  know  Mr.  Garland?" 

"Not  long." 

"When  did  your  acquaintance  with  him  cease?" 

"When  I  met  Stanford  White." 

"Isn't  it  true  that  ^Ir.  Garland  became  very  an- 
noying when  you  lived  at  a  certain  apartment 
house?" 

"No." 

"Your  recollection  is  clear  that  you  posed  in  drap- 
eries the  day  before  the  mirrored-room  incident?" 

"Yes." 

"Was  there  any  exposure  of  the  person?" 

"The  photographs  were  low-necked." 

The  ivory  cheeks  of  the  fair  witness  suddenly 
flamed  with   color  and  a  look  of  mingled  fear  and 


sT 

u 

O 

o 

o 

^ 

rt 

<u 

Si 

^ 

•— > 

(-H 

•  — 

>, 

i) 

'  /< 

•73 

r 

K 

^ 

^ 

o 

X 

n. 

4-* 

u 

rt 

< 

^■H 

o 

■4-> 

•-H 

o 

c 

Im 

X! 

4-> 
C/1 

a, 

THE  HIDDEX  WITNESS  151 

anger  crept  into  her  big  limpid  eyes.  She  was  about 
to  break  down  when  the  hearing  for  the  day  was 
ended.  It  was  a  spell  of  sorrow  to  her  husband  and 
terror  to  the  woman. 

Another  day  of  torture  was  in  store  and  it  came 
with  the  morrow.  Jerome  had  prepared  to  make  the 
ordeal  terrific  and  under  his  pitiless  lash  Evelyn  fell 
like  a  stricken  doe.  Jerome  read  his  questions  from 
notes  carefully  prepared,  realizing  it  was  useless  to 
attempt  to  ensnare  the  witness  any  other  way.  Al- 
though he  brought  tears  to  her  eyes,  and  caused  her 
to  wince  again  and  again,  she  stuck  to  her  story 
bravely. 

"Did  you  continue  to  believe  all  women  were  what 
Stanford  White  told  you  until  you  talked  with  Thaw 
in  Paris  in  1903?"  he  thundered. 

**Yes,  sir,"  replied  Mrs.  Thaw  meekly. 

Then  Jerome  proved  that  Mrs.  Thaw  had  visited 
a  place  in  Paris  called  the  Dead  Riit  in  company  with 
Harry   Thaw. 

"Before  the  time  you  left  Paris,  had  you  any  ap- 
preciation that  such  things  as  you  have  described 
were  considered  as  improper  and  positively  wrong?" 
Not  until  my  talk  with  Mr.  Thaw." 
Before  that  you  didn't  believe  it  wrong;  you  did 
not  think  it  improper?" 

"Oh,  yes." 

"Very  wrong?" 


<  < 


152      THE  QBE  AT  THA^V  CASE 


i  i 
i  i 


*^Not   particularly.      I    knew   people    said    it   was 
wron^r. ' ' 

''Did  you  think  it  very  indelicate  and  vulgar?'* 

"That  is  all." 

"That  it  was  only  bad  taste?" 

"Yes." 
But  you  didn't  think  it  was  wrong?" 
I  didn't  fully  realize  it  until  I  went  to  Paris." 
^"But  you  thought  it  was  wrong?" 
^"Yes.'"^' 

"Did  you  belong  to  any  religious  organization?" 

"Xo."*^ 

"You  went  to  church  and  Sunday  school  in  Pitts- 
burg?" 

"Not  in  Pittsburg." 

"In  Paris  it  was  impressed  on  you  that  White  had 
done  you  a  terrible  wrong?" 

"In  a  way." 

"Before  you  left  Paris  you  had  begun  to  look  on 
such  relations  as  very  wrong?" 

"Yes." 

"Had  you  come  to  a  full  understanding  of  the  in- 
famous character  of  White's  act?" 

"Yes— but  not  so  much  as  I  have  now." 

"Yet  it  was  this  tli^it  induced  your  renunciation  of 
Thaw^s  great  love?" 

"Yes,"   said    ^Irs.   Thaw,   as  tears  welled   to   her 
eyes. 

"Did  you  refuse  Thaw  solely  ])ecanse  of  the  oc- 


THE  HIDDEX  WITXESS  153 

CTirrence  with  White?''  asked  ^Ir.  Jerome  of  the  Avit- 
ness. 

''Because  I  had  been  found  out.*' 

"AYho  told  vou  vou  had  been  caught?" 

''Friends  of  Stanford  White." 

**So  it  was  not  because  of  the  occurrence,  but  be- 
cause you  had  been  found  out?*' 

•'It  was  both  together.     I  had  an  instinct  about  it. 
When  ^Ir.  Thaw  proposed  it  was  the  fii-st  proposal 
I  ever  had  and  it  all  struck  me  very  seriously.     It  all    • 
came  together." 

"You  felt  the  most  heinous  wrong  had  been  done?'' 

"I  didn't  know  anvthinir  about  it  at  the  time.  All 
I  remember  is  what  I  felt  like  when  I  woke  up.  I 
remember  that  distinctly.  I  didn't  undei'stand  what 
had  taken  place." 

"It  outraged  eveiy  maidenly  instinct  in  you,  didn't 
it?" 

"It  did,  and  that  is  why  I  quarreled  with  Stanford 
White." 

"You  were  very  bitter  against  White  when  you 
told  Thaw,  weren't  you?" 

"Xot  then." 

"When  you  felt  j'ou  wi-re  giving  up  Thaw's  love 
you  didn't  feel  bitter  against  White?" 

"Xot  intensely.  Xot  until  Mr.  Thaw  made  me 
realize  it." 

"Did  you  continue  to  have  a  feeling  of  enmitv 
against  White?"  continued  Jerome. 


154  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

"I  wouldn't  s;i\'  eniuitv  — it  was  hostility  aji-ainst 
liiiii  for  th!s  one  thing  and  subsequent  things." 

"What  subsequent  things?" 

The  prosecutor  caught  up  Mrs.  Thaw's  own 
words?*' 

"Things  with  Stanford  White,"  replied  Mrs. 
^rhaw. 

"Were  they  improper  and  indecent?" 

"I  don't  know  what  you  would  call  them." 

Mr.s.  Thaw  then  testified  that  while  she  was  in  Lon- 
don, before  her  marriage,  her  mother  compelled  her 
to  write  a  friendly  letter  to  White. 

"While  abroad  did  you  tell  your  mother  of  your 
experience  with  White." 

"No." 

"How  did  you  know  Stanford  White's  friends 
knew  of  your  relations  with  Stanford  White?" 

"One  of  them  saw  me  with  him  at  the  East 
Twenty-second  street  studio." 

"Was  there  any  impropriety  there?" 

"Yes." 

"So  you  continued  to  maintain  relations  with 
Stanford  White?" 

"Yes,  for  a  time." 

Thaw  buried  his  face  in  his  hands.  Tears  were  in 
Mrs.  Thaw's  eyes  and  she  broke  into  sobs. 

Mr.  Jerome  demanded  the  name  of  the  man  who 
had  seen  her  at  the  studio.  lie  asked  the  witness  to 
whisper  it. 


TEE  BIDDEN  WITNESS  155 

Mr.    Delmas   wanted    it   publicly    announced .      A 
wordy  conflict  ensued,  in  which  Mr.  Jerome  threat-, 
ened  to  have  the  courtroom  cleared.     Justice  Fitz- 
gerald  finally   settled   the   matter,   saying  the   name 
might  be  given  to  counsel,  the  court,  and  the  jury. 

"Did  you  tell  Harry  Thaw  about  these  subsequent 
relations  with  Stanford  White?" 

''Yes." 

*'And  you  didn't  think  to  tell  us  on  your  direct  ex- 
amination?" 

''No." 

"Can  you  fix  dates  as  to  these  subsequent  events?^ 

"No." 

"How  did  you  know  this  man  knew  of  your  rela- 
tions with  White?" 

"He  saw  me  one  day  with  Mr.  White  in  one  of  his 
studios." 

"Were  you  and  Mr.  White  alone?" 

"Yes." 

"And  this  was  about  a  month  after  the  incident 
with  drugs?" 

"Yes." 

"How  long  did  you  continue  to  visit  Mr.  White?" 

"Not  after  January,  1902." 

"How  many  visits  did  you  make?" 

"I  do  not  remember." 

"Were  they  frequent?" 

"No." 

"Ten  times?" 


156  THE  GEE  AT  TUA\Y  CASE 

*^I  can't  remember.'' 

"Where  did  these  visits  take  place?" 

"At  the  Twenty-second  and  Twenty-fourth  street 
studios  and  in  the  Tower." 

"And  on  these  occasions  were  you  two  alone?" 

"Yes." 

"Did  you  partake  of  refreshments  there?" 

"Yes." 

"Were  you  drugged  again?" 

"No." 

"Did  you  have  too  much  wine?" 

"Yes." 

"What  time  of  the  day  did  these  incidents  occur?" 

"Usually  after  the  theater,"  replied  ]\lrs.  Thaw, 
wiping  the  tears  from  her  eyes. 

As  to  the  nature  of  the  operation  which  was  per- 
formed upon  her  while  she  was  at  school  in  New 
Jersey  the  witness  said  she  knew  only  what  the  nurses 
and  doctors  told  her,  that  it  was  for  appendicitis. 

"AVhy  did  you  not  tell  your  mother  all  about  your 
visits?" 

"I  would  rather  have  died  than  to  tell  her,"  almost 
shrieked  the  girl. 

During  this  period  the  prosecution  established  the 
following  facts  adverse  to  her: 

That  this  beautiful  girl,  in  the  critical  character- 
forming"  time  of  her  life  was  practicall;^'  without  re- 
ligious instruction  or  training. 

That  she  was  an  associate  of  various  men  (►!■  evil 


J 


THE  HIDDEX  ^yITXESS  157 

reputation  and  mingled  with  the  gayest  set  of  the  in- 
temperate, circles  of  Bohemia. 

That  she  pursued  a  calling  most  dangerous  t  >  in- 
nocence and  purity  for  any  girl. 

That  she  lived  off  the  bounty  of  the  man  who  she 
^dleges  committed  a  shocking  crime  against  her. 

That  she  held  astounding  and  shameful  ideas  of 
morality. 

This  was  Mrs.  Thaw's  worst  day  on  the  stand,  v/hen 
her  tears  flowed  almost  constantly.  When  she  was 
forced  to  tell  of  her  experiences  in  White's  infamous 
studio,  she  almost  fainted.  With  head  buried  in  his 
hands,  Thaw  wept  aloud.  It  was  a  pitiful  scene.  Tlie 
husband  was  so  far  overcome  that  he  could  not  take 
liis  customary  notes  on  the  trial. 

Evelyn  Thaw  was  delirious  that  night  and  fell  in 
^liiy  ^NIcKenzie's  arms  at  her  hotel. 

Is  it  a  wonder  that  Evelyn  Thaw  wished  to  flee 
from  further  notoriety  after  Thaw  shot  Stanford 
White,  according  to  a  member  of  the  Thaw  house- 
hold? She  is  said  to  have  made  hasty  preparations 
to  sail  for  Europe.  When  the  Thaw  lawyers  learned 
of  this,  a  council  was  called  immediately,  and  Evelyn 
was  induced  to  stay,  as  rumor  had  it,  by  liberal  con- 
cessions of  the  Thaws, 


CHAPTER     XIII. 
Lived  on  Bounty  of  Stanford  White. 

EVELYN  THAW  FORCED  INTO  FURTHER  REVELATIONS — 
PROVED  THAT  WHITE  PAID  HER  BILLS— ARCHITECT'S 
LETTERS  AND  RECEIPTS  FOR  MONEY  PAID  HER,  READ- 
THAW  CALLED  WHITENS  CASH  ^^ POISON ''  —  AMERICAN 
OP^PICIAL  DRAGGED  INTO  SCANDAL — JEROME  PRODI' (T^S 
E\^LYN  thaw's  diary  AS  A  SCHOOLGIRL— EVELYN 'S 
PHILOSOPHY  — DECLARES  HERSELF  VERY  '*  SUSCEPTI- 
BLE'* — ABE  HUMMEL  CALLED;  LEAVES  THE  STAND 
W^ITH  STORY  UNSHAJCEN. 

More  crnshino-  than  all  the  ordeals  hitherto  exper- 
ienced, Evelyn  Thaw  wa*s  next  compelled  to  admit  tlie 
shameful  fact  that  after  her  rnin  she  lived  on  the 
hounty  of  her  betrayer.  Documentary  evidence  was 
introduced  to  strengthen  the  hands  of  the  merciless 
Jerome.  A  dozen  times  she  took  refuge  in  the  an- 
swer, "I  don't  remember." 

It  was  a  bad  day  for  the  defense.  The  most  sensa- 
t'.onal  feature  of  the  session  was  the  introduction  of 
her  diary  which  picturerl  her  a  whimsical,  strange 
little  philosopher,  even  <;«  a  school  girl. 

Jerome  sprang  his  coup  with  startlinu'  suddenness. 
Tie  handed  iNfrs.  Thaw  a  bundle  of  receipts  represent- 
ing monoy  paid  to  her  rnd  her  mother  by  Stanford 
White,  and  demanded  that  the  fail-  witnc^ss  identify 
iicr  own  signature  on  them. 

158 


STAXFORD  WHITE'S  BOVNTY  159 

There  were  fourteen  receipts  in  all.  They  were 
for  various  amounts  received  from  the  Mercantile 
Trust  company,  where  White  had  deposited  a  sum 
of  money  for  Evelyn  and  her  mother.  The  amounts 
varied  from  $65  to  $110.  The  receipts  were  signed 
"Evelyn  Florence  Nesbit,'*  the  mother  and  daughter 
liaving  the  same  name. 

A  letter  and  envelope  addressed  to  White's  private 
secretary  by  the  architect  were  next  offered  in  evi- 
dence.   The  letter  said : 

"Dear  Ilartnett:  Please  telephone  Mrs.  Nesbit 
to  let  you  know  whenever  ]\Iiss  Evelyn  decides  to  go 
on  her  vacation.  Then  send  this  note  to  the  Mercan- 
tile Trust  company:  *  Please  notify  ^liss  Nesbit  that 
on  receiving  word  she  is  about  to  start  on  her  vacation 
you  will  send  her  the  weekly  checks  for  $25  and  an 
additional  check  for  $200.'       Yours  truly, 

"Stanford  White.'' 

Evelyn  was  then  compelled  to  admit  that  for  sev- 
eral months  in  1902  she  lived  at  the  exclusive  Audu- 
bon apartments  and  that  White  paid  the  rent.  Then 
she  told  of  her  meeting  with  Thaw  and  of  her  trip  to 
Europe  with  him  and  of  her  recital  to  him  of  the 
story  of  her  ruin,  which,  it  was  contended,  wrecked 
his  mind. 

' '  When  Harry  learned  I  had  a  letter  of  credit  from 
Stanford  White,  he  grew  very  much  excited/'  de- 
clared Mrs.  Thaw.  "He  said  the  money  was  filthy 
and  poisonous  and  that  I  must  never  touch  it  again. 


160  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Tie  said  he  would  take  it  so  I  could  not  use  it.  He 
said  that  he  would  give  me  anything  I  wanted,  and 
that  if  mamma  wanted  anything  she  would  only  have 
to  ask  for  it. 

''When  Mr.  White  gave  me  the  letter  of  credit  it 
was  sealed  up.  I  did  not  know  what  it  was,  and  he 
told  me  I  must  not  open  the  letter  until  we  were  well 
at  sea.  Whatever  was  used  of  the  money  was  for 
my  mother.  Mr.  Thaw  gave  it  to  her  after  I  had 
given  it  to  him." 

Thaw  gave  her  $1,000  while  she  w^as  in  Paris. 

Jerome  had  in  some  mysterious  and  unexplained 
way  secured  possession  of  a  diary  kept  by  Evelyn 
while  she  was  at  school  at  Pompton,  N.  J.,  in  1902. 
Rumor  had  it,  that  a  handsome  sum  of  money  found 
its  way  to  a  member  of  her  family  for  filching  the 
booklet.  Extracts  from  the  diary  were  read  to  the 
fair  witness,  who  admitted  theii-  authorship. 

Some  of  the  remarkable  excerpts  were : 

''Mrs.  De  Mille  (the  head  of  the  school)  said  to 
come  right  in  and  I  jumped  with  the  agility  of  a 
soubrette  and  began  to  get  shy. 

"I  met  Mrs.  De  Mille 's  son,  and  I  must  admit  that 
he  was  a  pie-faced  mutt. 

"My  room  here  is  neither  large  nor  small.  There  is 
a  white,  virtuous  bed.  I  took  a  nap,  and  the  last 
thing  I  remember  was,  I  wondered  how  far  T  am 
from  Rector's.  Rector's  is  really  not  a  proper  place 
for  an  innocent  young  person,  but  I  always  had  a 
Weakness  foi"  it." 


STANFORD  WHITE'S  BOUNTY         161 

"When  one  comes  to  think  it  over  it  is  good  to  have 
lived.  A  girl  who  has  always  been  good  and  never 
had  any  scandal  about  her  is  fortunate  in  more  ways 
than  one.  On  the  other  hand,  not  one  of  them  will 
ever  be  anything.  By  anything  I  mean  just  that. 
They  will,  perhaps,  be  good  wives  and  mothers,  but 
whether  it  is  ambition  or  foolish,  I  mean  to  be  a  good 
actress  first. 

"Of  course,  I  can't  live  here  all  the  time.  And  I 
can't  forget  all  the  old  people.  They  do  not  know 
what  they  are  doing  here,  but  give  them  a  chance  to 
get  away  and  see  what  they  would  do.  If  I  stay  here 
long  I'll  get  just  like  the  rest.  I  am  very  susceptible 
and  I'll  soon  be  a " 

"From  the  time  you  first  became  intimate  with 
Thaw  in  1903  until  the  shooting  of  White,  June  25, 
1906,  did  you  ever  see  anything  in  Thaw's  condition 
that  was  irrational?"  asked  Mr.  Jerome. 

"Yes." 

]\Irs.  Thaw  then  detailed  several  instances.  She 
said  that  one  night  while  on  Broadway  in  a  cab,  she 
and  Thaw  saw  White.     Thaw  became  much  excited. 

"I  don't  know  what  you  would  call  it,"  she  said, 
"but  I  would  call  it  a  fit.  He  cried  and  sobbed,  and 
bit  his  nails  and  talked  rapidly." 

"Did  you  ever  see  a  man  in  an  epileptic  fit?"  asked 
Mr.  Jerome. 

"I've  seen  cats." 

There  was  considerable  laughter. 


162  TEE  GFEAT  THAW  CASE 

Mrs.  Thaw  said  her  husband  told  her  that  White 
was  circulating  scandalous  stories  about  him  and  was 
plotting  to  have  him  killed. 

Abe  Hummel,  a  once  brilliant  and  respected  lawyer 
in  New  York  with  a  large  practice  among  theatrical 
people,  was  brought  on  the  stand  by  the  prosecution 
prepared  to  swear  that  Mrs.  Thaw  had  made  an  affi- 
davit in  his  presence  that  Harry  had  beat  her  in 
Paris. 

The  evidence  was  not  admitted.  Jerome  tried, 
however,  to  prove  that  she  had  made  the  affidavit. 
Evelyn,  who  had  left  the  courtroom,  was  recalled. 
She  came  drying  her  eyes  and  showing  sigiis  of  bitter 
disappointment  because  she  was  not  allowed  to  re- 
main at  her  husband's  side. 

*' You've  a  brother,  Howard  Nesbit?"  began 
Jerome. 

''Yes,  sir.'' 

*'0n  your  return  from  Europe  in  190-3,  did  you 
tell  your  brother  Howard,  in  substance,  that  while 
you  were  abroad  you  had  been  brutally  abused  by 
Thaw  to  induce  you  to  tell  lies  against  Stanford 
White,  and  that  these  li^s  were  that  he  had  drugged 
and  mistreated  you,  which  story  you  told  Howard 
Nesbit  was  false?" 

''I  did  not." 

''Didn't  you  tell  your  brother  you  were  compelled 
at  the  point  of  a  revolver  to  make  some  sucli  state- 
ment?" 

''I  did  not" 


ST  AX  FORD  V\^HITE'S  BOUNTY  163 

''Didn't  yon  tell  Howard  these  facts  in  substance 
at  some  time  '? ' ' 

''I-did-not!" 

Each  time  this  answer  was  repeated  witn  greater 
emphasis  and  a  longer  pause  between  the  three  words. 

Evelyn  was  excused  again.  Jerome  had  been  try- 
ing to  prove  her  a  perjurer,  but  had  failed. 

This  ended  Evelyn's  greatest  oi'deal  on  the  witness 
stand.  The  slender  girl  was  free  to  rest  after  a  strain 
that  had  taxed  her  vitality  to  the  utmost.  Although 
she  had  suffered  much  in  personal  reputation,  her 
original  .story  was  unshaken. 

Dr.  Evans,  the  alienist,  was  recalled  for  cross  ex- 
amination and  remained  on  the  stand  two  days.  Tie 
was  given  a  terrific  cross  fire  of  questions.  Summed 
np  Dr.  Evans  stated  that  he  believed  Thaw  to  have 
been  suff'ering  from  adolescent  insanity  in  190.'i  and 
at  the  time  of  his  marriage,  again  on  April  4,  1905, 
and  that  when  he  killed  Stanford  White.  June  25, 
1906,  he  was  the  victim  of  an  acute  and  recurrent  at- 
tack of  the  same  mental  maladv. 

Important  as  was  his  testimony,  it  was  quite  lost 
sitiht  of  by  the  public  in  the  keen  interest  surround- 
ing Evelyn  Thaw,  and  the  spirit  of  anticipation  with 
whicli  the  appearance  of  Harrv  Thaw's  mothei-  was 
awaited. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

Thaw's  Mother  on  the  Stand. 

AGED  WOMAN  WITH  ALL  HER  WEALTH  AND  SOCIAL  POSI- 
TION, A  PATHETIC  FIGURE— BENT  WITH  GRIEF  AND 
SHAKEN  WITH  SOBS  — TELLS  HOW  SON  WEPT  VIO- 
LENTLY AT  NIGHT  — FIRST  HEARD  EVELYN  NESBIT  S 
NAME  ON  THANKSGIVING  BEFORE  MARRIAGE— HARRY 
CONFIDED  TO  MOTHER  THAT  GRIEF  WAS  DUE  TO  EVE- 
LYN ^S  FATE  — CALLED  HER  VICTIM  OF  CIRCUMSTANCES 
—  MOTHER  APPROVED  OF  MARRIAGE  ON  CONDITION 
THAT  MRS.  HOLMAN  SHOULD  NEVER  ENTER  HER  HOUSE 
AND  THAT  EVELYN 'S  PAST  SHOULD  NEVER  BE  RE- 
FERRED   TO  —  DEFENSE   ENDS   ITS    CASE. 

Pathetic  as  was  the  trembling  fio-ure  of  Evelyn 
Nesbit  Thaw  on  the  witness  stand  it  paled  into  insi<»'- 
nifieance  as  eonipared  with  the  appearance  of  Mrs. 
Williaiji  Thaw,  the  aged  mother  of  the  defendant,  in 
the  role  of  a  witness,  contribnting  her  share  of  humil- 
iation to  the  sacrifice  for  her  son's  life. 

Bent  with  t^^rief  and  shaken  with  sobs,  the  hans^hty 
widow  of  the  millionaire  steel  kinfi:  appeared  clothed 
from  head  to  foot  in  black.  For  the  moment,  pride  of 
family  and  of  wealth  disappeared  before  the  misery 
of  the  ordeal  she  had  to  nndersjo.  Momentarily,  slie 
would  show  a  flash  of  spirit,  but  it  disnppeni'ed  <il- 
raost  as  quickly.     Even  the  stern  prosecutor  softened 

164 


MRS.  WILLIAM   THAW 
Harry  Thaw's  aged  mother. 


THAW'S  MOTHER  167 

in  manner  before  the  sorrow  of  the  aged  woman.  To 
attack  her  with  the  same  ferocity  as  the  wife  of 
the  accused  would  have  spelled  ruin  for  him.  He 
read  the  handwriting  on  the  wall  and  desisted. 

Altogether  Mrs.  Thaw  did  not  make  as  good  a  wit- 
ness as  did  Evelyn  with  her  wonderful  composure  and 
ready  wit ;  but  she  impressed  the  jury  and  all  hearc^rs 
forcibly  nevertheless.  She  herself  seemed  disap- 
pointed when  her  examination  came  to  an  end.  Her 
disappointment  centered  about  refusal  of  counsel  to 
permit  her  to  deny  that  her  son  Harry  suffered  a 
tnint  of  insanity  by  heredity.  She  was  placed  on  the 
stand  immediately  after  Dr.  Charles  D.  Wagner,  an 
alienist,  had  testified  Harry  Thaw  was  incapable  of 
viewing  his  action  as  wrong  when  he  shot  White. 

Mr.  Del  mas  conducted  the  direct  examination  of 
.^frs.  Thaw,  which  follows :  . 

"In  what  time  of  the  fall  of  1903  did  your  son, 
Harry  K.  Thaw,  come  to  your  home  in  Pittsburg?" 

**In  October.  He  came  two  days  after  my  other 
son  was  married. 

''During  the  time  that  Harry  K.  Thaw  was  at  your 
home  did  you  notice  anything  peculiar  in  his  conduct 
denoting  a  change?" 

"When  he  first  entered  the  house  his  manner  was 
such  that  it  struck  me  at  the  time." 

"Will  you  descri])e  his  appearance!" 

"He  seemed  absent-minded  and  had  a  despairing 
look." 


168  THE  GREAT  THA^V  CASE 


''Did  this  continue ?" 

"Yes." 


"What  followed?" 

"This  sort  of  thin":  happened  several  times  at 
night.  His  room  was  next  to  mine  and  he  sobbed 
violently  during  the  night." 

It  was  at  this  point  that  the  grief-stricken  mother 
first  gave  Avay  to  her  overpowering  emotion.  Her 
face,  which  had  been  as  gray  as  her  hair  when  she 
entered  the  courtroom,  flushed  red  and  tears  stole 
down  her  cheeks. 

She  wiped  away  the  tears  with  a  black-bordered 
handkerchief  and  continued  her  story  in  a  hesitating 
manner.  Her  tones  were  so  low  that  several  of  the 
jurors  could  not  hear  her. 

"Had  you  proceeded  to  state  that  you  had  found 
your  son  as  late  as  3  or  4  in  the  morning  awake  and 
undressed  ? '  * 

"No;  I  said  he  was  dressed." 

"And  you  had  proceeded  to  state  what  he  said?" 

"He  said  that  a  man— probably  tlu^  worst  man  in 
Xew  York— had  ruined  his  life." 

"Had  you  made  any  inquiry  of  your  son  as  to 
what  that  man  had  done?" 

"He  said  the  man  had  wrecked  the  life  of  a  young 
girl." 

"Did  you  learn  more  about  that  statement?" 

"Yes.  I  could  not  learn  who  the  girl  wms  who  was 
associated  with  this  wicked  m;in  in  New  York." 


THA  ^Y  'S  MO  THEE  1 G9 


?  1 


*'Did  you  learn  her  name  from  your  son? 

''Yes." 

"Will  you  tell  us  just  what  he  saidf" 

"I  learned  more  about  it  afterward." 

"Was  that  all  you  learned  up  to  Thanksgiving 
day?" 

Mrs.  Thaw  ])egan  crying  again  and  restrained  her- 
self only  after  a  great  effort. 

Some  of  the  jurors  complained  that  they  had  not 
leen  able  to  hear  the  testimony.  By  direction  of  the 
court,  the  stenographer  read  aloud  the  testimony  of 
Mrs.  Thaw.  Her  testimony  was  as  follows,  eliminat- 
nig  questions: 

"In  November,  1903,  a  few  daj^s  before  my  second 
son  was  married,  Harry  came  there.  It  was  the  18tli 
of  November.  I  noticed  a  change  in  his  conduct 
when  he  first  entered  the  house.  I  had  the  habit  of 
going  to  the  door,  and  when  I  saw  him  it  struck  me 
that  he  looked  absent-minded,  as  if  he  had  lost  in- 
terest in  c^-.  erything.     The  impression  grew  on  me. 

"He  appeared  to  b;'  laboring  with  a  problem.  He 
went  to  the  drawing  room  and  I  heard  the  piano 
I)laying  violently  at  first  and  then  the  tone  grew 
softer  and  softer.  This  happened  aft.T  he  would 
come  back,  and  after  a  while  he  would  go  to  the  draw- 
ing room  and  resume  playing  in  the  same  way,  first 
wildly  and  then  softer  and  softer. 

"But  the  most  marked  feature  was  his  wakefulness 
at  night.     His  room  Avas  next  to  mine  and  I  would 


170 


THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 


hear  him  so])biiig.  I  would  see  a  light  under  the  door 
at  three  or  four  in  the  morning.  I  woukl  go  into  his 
ro(mi  and  find  him  sitting  up  crying. 

"I  am  not  of  a  prying  disposition,  and  I  did  not 
inquire  into  his  trouble  at  once.  He  finally  told  u'c 
one  night  what  the  trouble  was.  He  did  not  tell  me 
definitely  at  first.  He  first  said  that  it  was  something 
a  wicked  man  in  New  York  had  done  that  had  ruined 
his  life.  That  was  as  much  as  I  could  get  from  him  at 
first.  He  said  the  man  was  probably  the  worst  in 
New  York. 

''On  Thanksgiving  I  learned  more.  I  did  not  ask 
the  girl's  name.  I  learned  from  him  one  night  what 
the  wicked  man  had  done  to  the  young  girl.  I  did  not 
want  to  in(iuire  any  further. 

^'I  told  him  thr.t  sort  of  thing  happened  in  New 
York  constantly  and  I  asked.  Why  should  that  ruin 
your  life?    But  he  insisted  it  had. 

"I  tried  to  influence  him  the  other  way,  to  show 
him  that  it  w^is  not  his  place  to  look  after  the  young 
girls. 

"He  said  the  girl  had  the  most  beautiful  mind  of 
jiny  woman  he  had  ever  met  and  that  if  she  had  been 
under  the  influence^  of  a  good  mother  she  would  have 
l)eeJi  the  best  woman  that  ever  lived.  I  can  ml  i*e- 
call  the  entire  conversation,  but  that  is  the  substnnof 
of  it. 

**I  only  know  tliat  on  Thanksgiving  Day  tliat  inci- 
dent  0<'curre(i.      It    was   the   first    Thanksgiving   Dav 


TEA ^y  'S  MOTHER  1  Tl 

iu  our  new  church,  and  as  it  was  very  crowded  Harry 
and  I  had  to  stand  under  the  gallery.  I  was  glad 
afterward  that  we  had  to.  as  we  heard  the  beautiful 
music. 

"I  heard  a  sob  and  when  we  drove  home  I  asked 
Ilarr}^,  'Why  did  you  forget  yourself  in  church?' 
and  he  said  it  suddenly  came  over  him— this  dreadful 
thing.  'If  that  dreadful  thing  had  not  happened/ 
he  said,  'she  could  have  been  here  with  us.'  " 

The  reading  ceased  and  Mrs.  Thaw  was  questioned 
further  by  'Sir.  Del  mas. 

'*Did  you  have  further  conversations  with  him,'" 

"I  think  that  was  the  substance  of  what  he  sai-'i 
and  what  I  noticed." 

"After  this  conversation  on  Thanksgiving  day,  di»l 
you  notice  anything  about  his  wakefulness  and  dis- 
turbed condition  ? " ' 

"Nearly  every  morning  I  saw  him  up  early.  The 
same  condition  prevailed." 

"Do  you  know  whether  Dr.  Bingaman  was  in  at- 
tendance a  few  afternoons  later?" 

"Yes;  I  i-emember  it  was  a  gloomy  afternoon.  It 
was  the  Saturday  after  Thanksgiving,  I  believe,  lie 
did  so  so  frequently  that  I  do  not  recall  any  single 
occasicm." 

''While  he  (Dr.  Bingaman)  was  in  your  home  di'l 
his  reference  to  this  young  girl  become  more  frequent 
or  less  frequent?" 


172  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 


"I  am  not  sure.  If  anything  it  was  more  fre- 
(liient." 

"When  did  you  learn  who  this  vounf?  "irl  was?'^ 

"I  cannot  recall  that.  I  have  tried  to.  Durin*:'  the 
Spring  of  1904,  before  he  went  abroad,  I  am  inclined 
to  think  I  learned  that." 

"At  that  time  can  you  recall  what  your  son  said 
about  the  young  girl?" 

"I  can  not  recall  it." 

District  Attorney  Jerome  here  appealed  to  the 
court  to  instruct  the  witness  to  answer  yes  or  no  to 
this  question. 

"You  have  stated  that  you  think  you  learned  who 
this  young  girl  was  before  your  son  went  to  Europe 
in  1904.     Now,  my  question  is,  what  did  he  say?" 

]\Irs.  Thaw's  examination  was  interrupted  at  this 
time  by  a  clash  of  counsel  over  the  purpose  of  th(^ 
(juestions.  District  Attorney  Jerome  insinuating  that 
if  it  was  to  show  Thaw  mentally  unbalanced  he  W(;uld 
ask  for  a  lunacy  commission.  The  clash  did  much  to 
disconcert  the  witness.  Finally  her  examination  con.- 
tinued. 

"What  did  your  son  say  to  you?" 

"It  Avas  some  time  between  Thanksgiving  and  ^vhen 
lie  went  back  to  Europe  that  he  told  me  who  the 
young  girl  was.  I  cannot  recall  the  convei'salion  we 
had,  but  I  think  it  was  in  March  that  he  told  me." 

"What  did  your  son  tell  you?" 

"He  said  she  had  gone   m  ith   he-  mother  to  New 


THAW'S  MOTHER  .  173 

Fork  and  she  had  met  the  wicked  man  who  had 
ruined  her.  I  cannot  recall  all  the  conversation,  but 
know  I  learned  her  name. 

"Have  you  now  stated  all  the  conversation  you  had 
with  your  son  between  the  time  he  got  home  and  the 
time  he  left  for  Europe?" 

''Yes:  I  have  told  all." 

"Your  son.  then  reappeared  in  your  home  in  the 
Fall  of  1904?" 

"Yes." 

'■'Did  he  speak  to  you  then  about  his  contemplated 
marriage  to  this  young  girl?" 

"I  remember  expressing  my  disapproval  about  his 
coming  over  from  the  other  side  with  her,  but  he  said 
there  was  nothing  wrong;  that  she  had  been  the  vic- 
tim of  circumstances." 

"Will  you  state  when  he  first  manifested  the  inten- 
tion of  marrying  that  young  girl?" 

"In  November,  1903,  he  tokl  me  he  desired  to 
marry  her,  but  that  he  had  been  frustrated  at  every 
move  he  made." 

"You  went  South  in  1904?" 

"In  February.  It  may  have  been  in  1905.  I  can- 
n'ot  remember  dates." 

"When  you  returned  from  the  South  you  say  your 
son  wa.s  still  intent  on  marrying  this  girl?" 

"Yes;  and  I  therefore  came  here  to  New  York  and 
saw  her.  This  was  about  a  month  before  the  wed- 
ding." 


174  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

''You  came  to  see  her?  And  did  you  talk  with 
your  son  about  the  wedding?" 

"Yes." 

"Did  you  finally  give  your  approval?  Kindly 
state  what  conversation  you  had  with  your  son  on  the 
subject  after  your  return  to  the  hotel?" 

"He  asked  me  whether  I  would  be  willing  he  should 
marry  her  and  I  said  he  could  marry  her  at  my  home. 
I  said  he  could  take  her  home— that  I  liked  th(^  gii'l. 
I  told  Harry  I  had  no  one  at  home  now  and  would 
take  this  girl  to  my  home  and  her  past  would  be 
closed.  I  told  him  I  would  never  ask  her  about  it 
nor  permit  it  to  be  mentioned  in  my  presence.  I  did 
however,  make  one  condition.  I  told  him  I  would  uo^ 
have  her  mother  in  my  house.  So  he  made  the  ar- 
rangements and  on  April  2  came  home  to  be  mar- 
ried." 

"Now,  after  you  had  given  your  approval,  they 
were  married  at  your  home  in  Pittsburg?" 

"Yes." 

"How  soon  did  the  mai-riage  take  place?" 

"Two  days  later." 

"What  seemed  to  be  his  condition  just  prior  to  tlu* 
marriage  ? ' ' 

"He  seemed  to  be  in  a  better  condition,  but  soiih^- 
what  depressed.  He  seemed  to  fear  that  the  mothei' 
of  the  girl  wcmld  withhold  her  consent  to  the  mar- 
riage. He  said  he  fearcMl  that  at  the  very  last  her 
mother  would  refuse  her  consent." 


TEA  W  'S  MO  THER  175 

''What  was  the  cause  of  this  agitation  on  his  wed- 
dintj  dav?" 

"He  felt  that  her  mother  would  still  try  to  inter- 
fere.   He  was  busy  writing-  nearly  all  day." 

"Did  you  know  that  a  will  and  codicil  was  being- 
executed  that  day?" 

''Yes." 

"At  what  time  of  the  day?" 

"At  the  early  dinner." 

"You  say  they  left  for  the  West  that  night?" 

"Yes." 

"How  did  he  appear  when  he  came  back?" 

"Their  life  was  clear  and  placid.  They  were  with 
me  until  October.  I  had  an  opportunity  and  care- 
fully watched  them." 

Mr.  Jerome  then  took  the  witness  in  hand  for  cross 
examination. 

"Did  your  son  learn  to  play  the  piano?" 

"Yes." 

"At  some  time  subsequent  to  the  death  of  3^our 
husband— or,  rather,  I'll  put  it  this  way— were  you 
the  executrix  or  trustee  of  your  husband's  estate?" 

Del  mas  objected. 

"I  am  trying-  to  show  that  at  a  certain  date  the 
executors  of  the  late  :\Ir.  Thaw's  will  increased  the 
amount  set  aside  for  the  defendant  under  the  will," 
said  Jerome. 

The  question  was  changed  as  follows: 

"Did  .sucl/  a. I  event  take  place?" 


176  TEE  GBEAT  TEAW  CASE 


''Yes." 

"At  what  date?" 


"I  cannot  remember  exactly." 

"How  did  it  come  about?" 

Del  mas  objected. 

"I  want  to  instruct  the  witness  that  the  District 
Attorney  can  ask  any  question  he  wants,"  he  said, 
"and  that  I  can  object  to  it  if  I  want  to,  and  I  ask 
you,  Mrs.  Thaw,  not  to  answer  until  I  have  had  a 
chance  to  object." 

' '  There  Avas  a  time  when  your  son,  under  his  f ath- 
er's  will,  was  to  receive  a  certain  amount  of  money 
unless  the  executors  saw  fit  to  increase  it  and  there 
was  a  subsequent  time  when  the  amount  was  increased 
])y  the  executors,  when  wa.s  that?" 

"If  you  will  state  it  Avas  after  June,  1903,  I  will 
not  object,"  said  Delmas. 

"I  will  not  allow  the  question  unless  you  set  the 
date  subsequent  to  June,  1903,"  said  Judge  Fitzger- 
ald." 

J'-roine  again  put  the  ({Uivstion  and  was  again  over- 
ruled. 

"After  the  death  of  the  defendant's  father  was  Ik* 
ill  receipt  of  a  certain  income  from  the  estate  of  hi.s 
father?" 

Delmas  objected  and  was  again  sustained. 

"After  June,  1903,  what  was  the  income  of  the  de- 
fendant?" 

"It  was  from  his  own  estate." 

"AYliat  income  did  he  receive  before  that?" 


CLIFFORD  W.  HARTRIDGE 
One  of  Thaw's  lawyers. 


THAW'S  MOTHER  179 

Delmas  objected  and  was  sustained;  Jerome  was 
beaten  at  every  point. 

"When  you  spoke  to  him  of  his  proposal  of  mar- 
riage, did  he  say  he  wanted  to  shield  the  young  girl 
from  a  wrong?" 

''Yes." 

"Did  he  relate  to  you  the  occurrences  in  Europe? 
Did  he  tell  you  of  his  desire  to  make  Evelyn  Nesbit 
his  wife?" 

"He  did." 

' '  Did  he  express  fear  that  he  might  not  be  married 
at  that  time?" 

"He  said  she  had  told  him  that  it  would  make  an 
unsuitable  match  and  that  while  he  was  very  anxious 
to  make  the  girl  his  wife  she  was  not  so  anxious  be- 
cause of  this  wrong." 

"When  they  arrived  from  Euroue  did  he  come  to 
your  home  in  Pittsburg?" 

"Not  directly,  but  during  that  month." 

"So  that  up  to  the  time  of  the  marriage  you  had 
received  no  information  of  his  former  relations  with 
Evelyn  Nesbit?" 

"No." 

"I  am  through,"  said  Jerome, 

After  the  aged  woman's  testimony  had  been  con- 
cluded, Attorney  Delmas  suddenly  threw  a  bomb 
into  the  ranks  of  the  prosecution  b^  announcing  in 
^  low  voice  the  three  words : 

^'The  defense  rests!" 


I 


PAULA   DESMOND 
Actress  figuring  in  the  case, 


CHAPTER    XV. 
Scathing  Denunciation  By  Jerome. 

DISTRICT  ATTORNEY  MAKES  ATTACK  ON  LIFE  OF  HARRY 
THAW— ATTRIBUTES  WILD  ORGIES  TO  THE  DEPENDENT 
—  THE  ETHEL  THOMAS  TRAGEDY— ATTEMPT  MADE  TO 
PROVE  EVELYN  THAW  A  PFRJURER— NEW  LIGHT  ON 
THE  CASE— ABE  HUMMEL  ON  THE  STAND— JEROME 
TRIES  TO  PROVE  EVELYN  HAD  SWORN  THAT  WHITE 
NEVER  WRONGED  HER— CHARGES  PLOT  BY  THAW  TO 
PUT  ARCHITECT  IN  PENITENTIARY— FAMOUS  ALIEN- 
ISTS SWEAR  THAW  WAS  SANE  AT  THE  TIME  OP  THE 
TRAGEDY— EVELYN  ON  THE  STAND  AGAIN. 

With  the  testimony  of  Thaw 's  aged  mother  fresh  in 
their  minds  the  jurors  heard  District  Attorney  Je- 
rome make  a  sensational  attack  on  the  past  life  of 
Harry  Thaw.  Jerome  insinuated  that  Thaw  had  in 
his  wild  youthful  days,  indulged  in  wild  orgies  no  less 
iniquitous  than  those  of  which  Stanford  White  had 
been  accused,  although  differing  in  character. 

Attorney  Frederick  Longfellow,  Thaw's  personal 
counsel,  was  a  witness  from  whom  Jerome  fought  to 
draw  this  information. 

Longfellow  was  an  unwilling  witness  and  every 
answer  had  to  be  dragged  from  him,  Delmas  inter- 
posing objections  to  the  procedure  throughout  the  ex- 
amination. 

182 


SCATHING  DENUNCIATION  183 


<  ( 


Did  you  represent  this  prisoner  in  the  suit  of 
Ethel  Thomas  against  Harry  K.  Thaw?"  demanded 
Jerome. 

''My   firm   did,"   Longfellow  was   allowed  to   an- 


swer 


It  has  been  said  that  alleged  acts  of  perversion 
by  White  added  to  the  fury  of  Thaw's  mental  unbal- 
ance, ' '  Jerome  stated.  ' '  I  want  to  show  that  he  knew 
all  about  such  things— that  they  were  set  forth  in  the 
complaint  in  this  suit  by  Ethel  Thomas,  the  papers 
of  which  were  served  on  him. 

"I  am  not  trying  to  show  that  Ethel's  statements 
were  true.     Anyway,  this  poor  girl  now  is  dead — 

A  hot  fight  came  here,  and  Jerome  was  forced  to 
withdraw  the  words  ''poor  girl,"  while  the  jury  was 
cautioned  to  ignore  what  Jerome  had  said. 

"Mrs.  Thaw  herself,"  Jerome  fairly  shouted, 
"says  she  was  told  the  story  of  Ethel  Thomas!" 

Longfellow  was  not  allowed  to  testify  to  anything 
about  the  charges  contained  in  the  Thomas  girl's  suit 
against  Thaw. 

Jerome  was  burning  with  wrath.  His  expected  vic- 
tory had  been  turned  to  bitter  defeat. 

The  next  witness  was  Policeman  Dennis  Wright, 
who  was  called  to  testify  as  to  conversations  he  had 
with  Thaw  the  night  of  Thaw's  arrest.  The  witness 
said : 

"When  I  was  in  Madison  avenue  I  saw  Thaw,     I 


184  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

asked  him  what  the  trouble  was.  He  said  he  wanted 
me  to  take  him  away  from  the  crowd,  to  take  him  to 
the  station-house." 

*'Was  there  any  more?" 

"Yes.  When  Ave  were  in  Fifth  avenue  some  per- 
son unknown  asked  me  if  I  knew  the  prisoner  ©r  what 
he  had  done.  I  said  I  did  not.  I  asked  the  defend- 
ant if  he  knew  w^hat  he  had  done  and  he  said  *Yes.' 
I  asked  him  if  he  knew  who  it  was  he  had  killed.  He 
said  he  would  say  nothing  until  he  reached  the  sta- 
tion-house. He  asked  me  for  a  light,  offered  me  a 
cigar,  and  then  wanted  to  take  a  cab  to  the  station, 
but  I  would  not  agree." 

"Were  his  actions  rational  or  irrational?" 

"Rational." 

Four  other  policemen  testified  Thaw  appeared  ra-. 
tional  after  the  murder. 

Jerome  here  made  an  attempt  to  prove  Evelyn 
Thaw  a  liar.  He  was  defeated,  however,  for  his  star 
witness,  Rudolph  Eckmyer,  a  photographer,  was  not 
allowed  to  tell  the  date  he  made  the  famous  Madison 
Square  Garden  photographs  of  Evelyn. 

"If  you  will  let  me  fix  the  date  of  these  pictures," 
he  said  heatedly,  "I  will  show  that  on  the  night  fol- 
lowing the  day  they  were  taken,  when  Mrs.  Thaw 's  ex- 
perience at  White's  studio  took  place,  Stanford 
AVhite  was  not  in  the  Twenty-fourth  street  house  at 
all.''        - 


SCATHING  DENUNCIATION  185 

Jerome  fairly  shouted  the  last  words  and  pounded 
the  table  before  him.  Mr.  Delmas  said  he  must  stand 
upon  his  objection,  and  it  was  sustained. 

''I  now  offer,"  repeated  Jerome,  "to  prove  by  this 
witness  the  exact  date  on  which  these  pictures  were 
taken,  which  was,  ]\Irs.  Thaw  testified,  the  day  before 
she  was  drugged  by  Stanford  White.  And  I  further 
offer  to  prove  that  on  that  occasion  Stanford  White 
was  not  where  she  said  he  was." 

James  Clinch  Smith,  Stanford  White's  brother- 
in-law,  who  was  in  Europe  when  the  trial  began,  was 
allowed  to  testify  for  the  defense.  Smith's  story 
threw  much  new  light  on  the  tragedy.  It  showed  that 
Thaw  several  times  passed  through  the  aisles  on  the 
Madison  Square  Roof-garden,  apparently  seeking 
some  one,  and  always  his  eyes  were  turned  on  the  spot 
where  Stanford  White  sat. 

He  sat  down  and  talked  to  Smith  on  a  variety  of 
subjects— Wall  street  speculation,  the  play,  a  trip  to 
Europe,  common  acquaintances,  and  many  other  top- 
ics. 

This  story,  Jerome  sought  to  show,  proved  that 
Thaw  was  sane  the  night  of  the  murder,  and  that  he 
repeatedly  sought  for  his  victim  on  the  roof-garden, 
instead  of  killing  him  because  of  a  sudden  impulse. 

"Thaw  sat  down  beside  me,"  said  the  relative  of 
AVhite,  "and  offered  me  a  cigar.  I  said,  *No,  thank 
you.'     He  said,  'How's  that,  don't  you  smoke  at  all?' 


186  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

I  said  I  occasionally  smoked  cigarets.  He  then  took 
out  his  cigaret  case,  offered  me  one,  and  I  took  it  and 
thanked  him.  He  struck  a  match  and  lit  my  cigaret, 
and  his  cigar.  He  asked  me  how  I  liked  the  play, 
and  I  said  I  did  not  care  for  it  much.  I  thought  it 
Blow  and  not  the  sort  of  play  for  a  roof-garden. 

"He  said,  'It  is  different  from  those  you  usually 
see  on  the  roof-garden.  It  is  a  relief  to  see  it,  and  1 
think  it  will  be  a  success.'     I  said  I  doubted  it. 

"A  few  moments  later  he  said,  'What  are  you  doing 
in  Wall  street  now — any  speculating?'  I  answered 
that  I  did  not  speculate  in  Wall  street.  He  said  he 
thought  there  was  a  great  chance  in  copper;  he  men- 
tioned Amalgamated  and  one  other. 

*'And  he  also  said  Steel  was  good;  he  could  not  see 
why  steel  stocks  were  kept  down;  the  company  was 
doing  a  bigger  business  than  ever.  He  said  if  he  had 
any  money  he  would  put  it  in  steel  and  copper,  partic- 
ularly copper." 

' '  Then  suddenly  he  said :  '  Where  are  you  going  this 
summer?'  I  told  him  that  I  was  going  to  Europe  on 
Thursday.  He  wanted  to  know  what  ship  I  was  go- 
ing on,  and  when  I  told  him  he  said  he  did  not  like 
the  ship. 

"He  said  he  was  going  on  the  Amerika  because  he 
could  get  on  that  ship  a  large  suite  of  rooms,  where 
he  could  have  his  meals  served  in  his  apartments. 

"Then  he  said:  'Are  you  alone  over  here?'  I  told 
him  that  I  had  left  my  wife  in  Paris, 


SCATHING  DENUNCIATION     .       187 

''When  Thaw  left  me  he  walked  around  several 
times,  looking  over  the  audience,  toward  the  place 
where  he  subsequently  shot  White.  Finally  his 
friends  arrived,  and  then  I  heard  three  pistol  shots 
and  saw  a  cloud  of  black  smoke.  I  saw  Thaw  after 
the  shooting,  aiming  his  pistol  toward  the  floor. 

' '  I  went  to  the  entrance,  keeping  my  eyes  on  Thaw 
all  the  while.  Then  I  saw  a  man  lying  face  downward 
on  the  floor.  The  man's  face  was  so  blackened  with 
powder  I  did  not  recognize  my  brother-in-law  and  left 
the  place  without  knowing  who  the  man  was." 

Smith  on  cross-examination  asserted  Thaw  was  not 
intoxicated  on  the  night  of  the  murder. 

Jerome  next  asked  Abe  Hummel  this  question : 

''Did  you  on  October  27,  1903,  see  Evelyn  Nesbit 
Thaw  in  your  office?" 

"I  did,"  replied  the  lawyer. 

"At  that  conversation  did  Mrs.  Thaw  inform  you 
that  Thaw  wanted  to  injure  White  and  put  him  in  the 
penitentiary  and  that  Thaw  had  compelled  her  time 
and  time  again  to  sign  statements  about  AVhite  and 
that  those  documents  charged  White  with  having 
drugged  Evelyn  Nesbit  when  she  was  about  fifteen 
years  old  and  that  she,  Evelyn  Nesbit,  had  told  you 
that  Thaw  had  beaten  her  for  not  signing  the  papers  ? ' ' 

Hummel  was  not  allowed  to  answer  then,  on  objec- 
tions by  Delmas,  but  the  witness  said  he  was  acting 
for  Stanford  White  at  the  time  of  the  conference. 


188  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

The  district  attorney  made  an  impassioned  argu- 
ment to  secure  the  admission  of  Hummel 's  testimony. 
He  said: 

''Your  Honor  has  ruled  and  rules,  as  I  believe,  with 
entire  correctness,  that  as  to  the  truth  or  falsity  as  to 
whether  Stanford  White  did  do  these  acts,  w^e  on  this 
trial  have  nothing  to  do,  the  issue  being,  did  the  de- 
fendant's mind  become  unhinged  by  these  and  other 
things  that  have  been  proven  in  evidence?  Was  an 
insanity  induced  by  this  revelation  and  the  others 
that  appear  in  evidence  which  so  swept  reason  from  its 
moorings  that  when  he  killed  Stanford  White  that 
night  he  did  not  know  the  nature  and  the  quality  of 
the  act  and  that  it  was  wrong  ? 

''Your  Honor's  rulings  have  reduced  the  case  to 
that,  and  have  properly  reduced  it,  in  my  estimation, 
to  that  point. 

"Now  on  that  question  of  whether  or  not  his  mind 
was  unhinged  by  these  revelations,  whether  or  no 
these  revelations  ever  were  made  to  him  is  surely  most 
important.  It  is  not  collateral.  It  goes  to  the  very 
root  of  the  case. 

"They  claim  that  as  Thaw  sat  in  the  hotel  in  Paris 
that  night  and  asked  her  to  marry  him  and  she  said 
she  would  not  because  of  White,  and  she  then  cryingly 
told  how  this  man  had  drugged  her  when  but  a  girl 
of  fifteen — they  contend  that  this  picture  unhinged 
his  mind.     Your  ILmor  has  ruled  we  have  nothinc:  to 


SCATHING  DENUNCIATION  189 

do  with  the  truth  or  falsity  of  her  story.  We  have 
nothing  to  do  with  whether  Stanford  White  did  or  did 
not  do  these  things.  The  issue  here  is  did  or  did  not 
this  defendant's  mind  become  unhinged  when  he 
heard  Evelyn  Nesbit's  story. 

''If  this  jury  believes  that  she  told  this  awful  story 
would  it  not  be  a  fact  that  they  would  carry  it  in  their 
minds  and  would  it  not  weigh  heavily? 

"If  on  the  other  hand  I  can  show  that  Mrs.  Thaw 
did  not  tell  Thaw  in  Paris  that  White  drugged  her  it 
will  be  a  matter  for  the  jury  to  consider  seriously  in 
determining  whether  or  not  Thaw  was  insane  when 
he  killed  Stanford  White. 

*'If  I  can  show  that  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw  under  the 
solemnity  of  an  oath  swore  that  White  had  never 
wronged  her;  if  I  can  show  that  she  repelled  the  ad- 
vances of  the  man  and  that  Thaw  whipped  and  beat 
her  because  she  would  not  affix  her  signature  to  an  affi- 
davit charging  White  wronged  her ;  if  I  can  show  that 
she  said  to  Hummel:  'He  beat  me  when  we  were  in 
Paris ;  he  lashed  me  with  a  whip  because  I  would  not 
sign  papers ; '  if  I  can  show  she  swore  '  Stanford  White 
never  touched  me';  if  I  can  show  that  Thaw  wanted 
her  to  sign  papers  in  order  to  put  White  in  the  peni- 
tentiary—I can  then  show  that  the  evidence  in  ques- 
tion is  of  vital  importance. 

"If  I  can  show  that  she  has  made  contradictory 
statements,  the  testimony  of  Doctors  Evans  and  Wag- 


190  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

ner,  which  was  based  on  her  statement  contained  in  the 
hypothetical  question,  can  be  stricken  from  the  rec- 
ords. 

' '  There  is  the  crux  of  the  case  as  it  appears  in  the 
evidence,  and  the  question  becomes  one  of  what  the 
law  says  on  this  subject  of  introducing  contrary 
statements  of  a  witness. 

"I  was  sincere  when  I  said  that  I  knew  nothing  in 
history  or  literature  could  compare  with  the  heroic 
sacrifice  made  by  Evelyn  Nesbit  when  she  refused 
to  accept  the  profit'ered  hand  of  Thaw  in  Paris— if  the 
story  told  by  Evelyn  is  true!'' 

The  court  made  no  decision  on  the  question  at  issue, 
and  examination  of  Hummel  was  resumed. 

'*At  the  interview  in  your  office,"  asked  Mr.  Je- 
rome, 'Vlid  Evelyn  Nesbit,  prior  to  your  dictating  any- 
thing, tell  you  that  she  had  told  Thaw  that  it  was  not 
true  that  Stanford  White  had  drugged  her?" 

Mr.  Delmas  was  on  his  feet  to  object,  but  before  he 
could  do  so  and  immediately  after  the  district  attor- 
ney had  ceased  to  speak,  Hummel  said,  in  a  loud  voice : 
''She  certainly  did." 

Mv.  Delmas  looked  at  the  witness,  and,  with  scorn 
in  Ills  voice,  said:  ''And  you  call  yourself  a  lawyer!" 
Then,  after  a  bitter  clash  with  the  district  attorney, 
in  which  temper  was  shown  on  both  sides,  Jerome 
being  denounced,  Delmas  said,  "Let  the  answer  stand, 
1  waive  my  right." 

Jerome  turned  to  Hummel  again  and  asked: 


SCATHING  DENUNCIATION  191 

*'Did  Evelyn  Nesbit,  as  she  was  then  known,  say  to 
you  that  Thaw  had  prepared  documents  charging 
Stanford  "White  with  having  drugged  her  when 
she  was  15,  and  insisted  upon  her  signing  them, 
but  that  she  told  Thaw  she  would  not,  because  the 
statement  was  not  true?'' 

The  court  ruled  this  question  could  not  be  answered 
until  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw  had  been  recalled  and  tes- 
tified as  to  whether  or  not  Hummel  was  acting 
as  her  attorney  or  as  White 's. 

The  next  testimony  was  by  Dr.  Austin  Flint,  fa- 
mous alienist  for  the  prosecution.  In  response  to  a 
question  which  required  an  hour  and  a  quarter  to  read, 
Dr.  Flint  said  Thaw  was  sane  when  he  killed  White. 
The  question  was  practically  a  review  of  the  trag- 
edy and  trial. 

The  other  $250-a-day  alienists  for  the  state— Drs. 
William  B.  Pritchard  of  the  New  York  Polyclinic  In- 
stitute, Albert  Warren  Ferris  of  the  College  of  Phy- 
sicians and  Surgeons,  A.  R.  Dieffendorf  of  the  State 
Hospital  of  Middletown,  Conn.,  and  a  professor  of 
mental  diseases  at  Yale  University,  Dr.  William  E. 
Mabon,  superintendent  of  the  New  York  state  hospi- 
tal for  the  insane  on  Wards  Island,  and  Dr.  William 
Hirsch  of  the  Cornell  Medical  College  made  the  same 
reply  to  the  same  question.  All  swore  Thaw  was 
perfectly  rational  and  knew  what  he  was  doing  when 
he  shot  White. 


192  THE  GREAT  THAW  CA8:E: 

Jerome  had  hurled  his  strongest  attack  against  the 
defense  in  this  desperate  effort  to  prove  Thaw  sane  at 
the  time  of  the  killing.  While  he  was  smiling  in  tri- 
umph Delmas  said: 

' '  Call  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw. ' ' 

Pale  and  apparently  almost  a  nervous  wreck  the 
beautiful  child  wife  took  the  stand. 

"Did  you/'  asked  Delmas,  "when  you  visited  Abe 
Hummel  in  his  office  call  upon  him  then  and  there,  in 
a  professional  capacity  with  a  view  to  having  his  legal 
advice  as  a  counsellor-at-law  ? '  * 

"I  did/'  was  the  answer. 

Mrs.  Thaw  then  left  the  stand. 

Justice  Fitzgerald  then  ruled  that  the  defense  could 
not  now  plead  the  professional  privilege  in  bar  of 
Hummel 's  testimony  for  the  privilege  was  involuntar- 
ily waived  when  young  IMrs.  Thaw  herself  took  the 
stand  and  told  of  the  occurrences  in  Hummel's  office. 

This  was  a  hard  blow  to  the  defense  and  the  Napo- 
leanic  Delmas  was  enshrouded  in  tempoi*ary  defeat. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

Shocking  Disclosures  in  Famous  Affidavit. 

DOCUMENT  DECLARED  TO  HAVE  BEEN  SIGNED  BY  EVELYN 
THAW  INTRODUCED  IN  EVIDENCE  — CHARGES  THAW 
CHOKED  HER,  AND  BEAT  HER  WITH  A  RAWHIDE  WHIP 
—  ANOTHER  ATTACK  THE  NEXT  DAY— FAINTED  IN  AG- 
ONY—BEATEN AND  CHOKED  AGAIN  AND  AGAIN— DE- 
PENDANT DECLARED  TO  HAVE  TAKEN  EVELYN 'S  DIA- 
MONDS AND  MONEY— THREATENED  WITH  BODILY  IN- 
JURY UNLESS  SHE  WOULD  ACCUSE  WHITE,  IS  CHARGE 
— AFFIDAVIT  ASSERTS  WHITE  DID  NOT  WRONG  HER. 

Startling  charges  that  Harry  Kendall  Thaw  admin- 
istered unmerciful  lashings  to  Evelyn  Nesbit,  and  tor- 
tured her  because  she  would  not  accuse  Stanford 
White,  were  made  in  the  famous  affidavit  prepared  by 
Abe  Hummel  and  allowed  by  Justice  Fitzgerald  to  be 
introduced  in  evidence,  after  Hummel  had  sworn  the 
prisoner's  sweetheart — Avhom  he  later  married — had 
signed  and  sworn  to  the  document. 

Threats  of  death  were  added  to  the  pitiless  whip- 
pings and  torture,  some  of  which  made  the  girl — then 
traveling  in  Europe  as  Thaw's  wife— faint  in  agony, 
and  on  one  occasion  confined  her  to  bed  for  three 
weeks,  so  read  the  affidavit.  In  this  document  Evelyn 
declared  White  did  not  injure  her.     With  blanched 

193 


(I 
( ( 


194  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

face— shuddering— Thaw  listened  to  the  reading  of 
the  document.  He  had  never  heard  it  before.  The 
full  text  of  this  affidavit,  classed  by  many  lawyers  as 
"the  most  remarkable  exhibit  ever  introduced  in  a 
New  York  law  court,"  was  as  follows: 

Evelyn  Nesbit  vs.  Harry  Kendall  Thaw, 
Supreme  Court,  city  and  county  of  New  York: 
Evelyn  Nesbit,  being  duly  sworn,  says: 
I  reside  at  the  Savoy  hotel,  Fifth  avenue  and 
Fifty-ninth  street,  city  of  New  York.  I  am  18  years 
of  age,  having  been  born  Christmas  day,  1884.  For 
several  months  prior  to  June,  1903,  I  had  been  at  Dr. 
Bull's  hospital  at  33  West  Thirty-third  street.  New 
York  city,  where  I  had  had  an  operation  performed  on 
me  for  appendicitis  during  the  month  of  June,  and 
then  went  to  Europe  with  my  mother,  at  the  request 
of  Harry  Kendall  Thaw,  the  defendant  above  named. 
''My  mother  and  I  had  apartments  at  the  Hotel 
Maintenon  in  Paris,  France,  and  from  there  traveled 
to  Boulogne,  during  which  time  we  were  accompanied 
by  Mr.  Thaw.  Mr.  Thaw  left  us  once  for  London, 
England.  Mother  and  I  remained  at  the  Imperial 
hotel  about  three  weeks. 

''While  the  said  Thaw  was  in  London  he  wrote  me 
a  number  of  letters.  He  then  returned  to  Boulogne 
and  took  my  mother  and  myself  and  we  went  back  to 
Paris,  where  we  stayed  at  the  Langham  hotel.  We  left 
there  about  two  weeks  after  and  the  said  Thaw,  my 


SHOCKING  DISCLOSURES  195 

mother  and  I  returned  to  London,  where  we  located  at 
Claridge's  hotel;  that  is,  my  mother  and  I  lived  in 
that  place,  while  Mr.  Thaw  stayed  in  Claridge's  hotel 
for  some  little  time  and  then  removed  to  the  Russell 
Square  hotel,  in  Russell  square,  London. 

"I  went  with  Mr.  Thaw  to  Amsterdam,  Holland, 
by  way  of  Folkestone.  I  was  ill  during  this  entire 
period.  ^Ir.  Thaw  and  I  traveled  throughout  Hol- 
land, stopping  at  various  places  to  make  connecting 
trains  and  then  went  to  Munich,  Germany. 

"We  then  traveled  through  the  Bavarian  high- 
lands, going  to  the  Austrain  Tyrol.  During  all  this 
time  said  Thaw  and  myself  were  known  as  husband 
and  wife  and  were  represented  by  the  said  Thaw  and 
known  under  the  name  of  ]\Ir.  and  Mrs.  Dellis. 

'*  After  traveling  for  about  five  or  six  weeks,  the 
said  Thaw  rented  a  castle  in  the  Austrian  Tyrol  known 
as  the  Schloss  Katzenstein,  which  is  situated  about 
half  way  up  a  very  isolated  mountain.  This  castle 
must  have  been  built  centuries  ago,  as  the  rooms  and 
windows  were  all  old-fashioned.  When  we  reached  the 
place  there  were  a  number  of  servants  in  the  castle. 
I  saw  a  butler,  a  cook,  and  a  maid.  They  were  the 
only  servants  there. 

"We  occupied  one  entire  end  of  the  castle,  two  bed- 
rooms, the  parlor,  and  a  drawing  room.  I  was  as- 
signed to  a  bedroom  for  my  personal  use. 

The  first  night  we  reached  the  Schloss  Katzensteiu 


(< 


196  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

I  was  very  tired  and  went  to  bed  right  after  dinner. 
In  the  morning  I  was  awakened  by  Mr.  Thaw  knock- 
ing on  the  door  asking  me  to  come  to  breakfast,  say- 
ing that  the  coffee  was  getting  cold.  I  immediately 
jumped  out  of  bed  and  hastily  dressed.  I  walked  out 
of  my  room  and  sat  dowTi  to  breakfast  with  said 
Thaw. 

' '  After  breakfast,  he  said  he  wished  to  tell  me  some- 
thing and  asked  me  to  step  into  my  bedroom.  I  en- 
tered the  bedroom,  when  Thaw  without  any  provoca- 
tion grasped  me  by  the  throat. 

*'I  saw  by  his  face  that  he  was  in  a  dreadfully  ex- 
cited condition.  His  eyes  were  glaring  and  his  hands 
grasped  a  raw-hide  whip. 

''He  seized  hold  of  me,  placed  his  fingers  in  my 
mouth  and  tried  to  choke  me.  He  then  without  the 
slightest  provocation  inflicted  on  me  several  severe 
blows  with  the  rawhide  whip,  so  severely  that  my  skin 
was  cut  and  bruised. 

' '  I  begged  him  to  desist,  but  he  refused, 

''I  shouted  and  I  cried. 

"He  stopped  then  for  a  minute  to  rest,  and  then 
renewed  his  attack  on  me,  beating  me  with  the  raw- 
hide whip. 

'*I  screamed  for  help,  but  no  one  heard  me;  the 
servants  did  not  hear  me  for  the  reason  that  they  were 
in  the  other  end  of  the  castle. 

''Thereupon  the  said  Thaw  renewed  his  brutal  at- 
tacks until  I  was  unable  to  move, 


SHOCKING  DISCLOSURES  197 

''The  following  morning  the  said  Thaw  adminis- 
tered another  eastigation  similar  to  the  day  before. 
He  took  the  rawhide  whip  and  belabored  me  iinmer- 
cifnlly. 

"I  swooned  and  I  did  not  Imow  how  long  I  re- 
mained in  that  condition  until  I  regained  conscious- 
ness. 

"He  left  me  in  a  frightful  condition.  My  fingers 
were  numb,  and  it  was  nearly  three  weeks  before  I 
sufficiently  recovered  to  get  out  of  my  bed  and  walk. 

"When  I  had  sufficiently  recovered  the  said  Thaw 

took  me  to  a -place  in ,  where  Italy  and  Austria 

join  and  then  we  went  to  Switzerland,  and  stopped 
at  a  place  called  the  Switzer  house  at  Santa  Maria. 

"The  next  morning  I  made  some  remark  and  said 
Thaw  took  me  to  my  room,  and  while  in  the  room  took 
a  rattan  and  beat  me  until  I  screamed ;  when  I  began 
to  scream  said  Thaw  again  stuck  his  fingers  into  my 
mouth. 

"During  all  that  time  the  said  Thaw  never  attempt- 
ed to  make  the  slightest  excuse  for  his  conduct  or  state 
what  the  provocation  was. 

"During  all  the  time  my  mother  and  I  remained  in 

England  we  occupied  apartments  at  5  Avenue . 

I  was  constantly  watched  by  detectives  and  other 
hirelings  of  said  Thaw,  including  the  coachman  and 
the  valet. 

"When  in  Paris  he  assaulted  me  with  a  rattan  for 


198  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

half  a  day,  at  intervals  of  half  an  hour  or  so,  striking 
me  severely. 

''One  day  my  maid  was  in  my  room  taking  things 
out  of  the  drawers  and  I  found  a  little  silver  box,  ob- 
long in  shape,  about  two  and  a  half  inches  in  length, 
containing  a  hypodermic  syringe,  and  some  other 
small  utensils.  I  asked  Thaw  what  that  was  for,  and 
he  stated  to  me  that  he  had  been  ill,  and  had  to  make 
some  excuse.  He  said  he  had  been  compelled  to  take 
cocaine.  The  first  time  I  found  he  w^as  addicted  to 
the  taking  of  cocaine  I  saw  the  said  Thaw  administer 
the  cocaine  to  himself  internally  by  taking  small  pills. 

' '  On  one  occasion  Thaw  attempted  to  compel  me  to 
take  one  of  these  pills,  but  I  refused  to  do  so. 

"While  in  Paris  I  suffered  from  sickness  by  reason 
of  the  beatings  he  had  administered  to  me  and  that 
he  had  given  me,  and  was  confined  to  my  bed  in  my 
room  about  two  weeks. 

"While  we  were  in  Paris  the  said  Thaw  compelled 
me  by  threatening  to  beat  me  to  write  a  letter  to  a 
M'iss  Simonton,  w^ho  was  staying  at  the  Algonquin  ho- 
tel in  the  city  of  New  York  and  knew  my  mother, 
asking  her  to  come  to  Paris.  When  she  got  there  he 
told  her  a  lot  of  falsehoods  and  lies  about  me,  telling 
me  previously  that  if  I  did  not  indorse  what  he  said 
he  would  kill  me. 

"AVliile  we  were  at  the  Schloss  Katzcnstein  the  said 
Thaw  took  from  me  without  my  consent  and  still  re- 


SHOCKING  DISCLOSURES  199 

tains  in  his  possession  two  diamond  rings,  one  sap- 
phire ring  with  a  diamond  on  each  side,  one  pearl  lock- 
et, one  gold  purse  and  $400  in  money  consisting  of 
drafts  from  Thomas  Cook  &  Sons.  He  had  also  in 
his  x^ossession  in  the  city  of  Paris  wearing  apparel  of 
mine,  consisting  of  five  gowns,  a  number  of  hats,  and 
three  parasols. 

' '  I  had  not  seen  my  mother  since  I  left  her  in  Lon- 
don, and  I  am  informed  within  the  last  few  weeks  that 
she  returned  to  tlie  city  of  New  York  from  London 
on  the  steamer  Campania. 

' '  I  arrived  in  this  city  Saturday,  Oct.  24,  1903,  hav- 
ing returned  from  Paris  by  way  of  Cherbourg. 

*' Before  I  left  Europe  the  said  Thaw  had  stated 
to  me  that  his  lawyer,  a  ^Ir.  Longfellow,  would  meet 
me  at  the  dock  and  asked  me  if  I  needed  anything. 
He  said  he  would  see  that  all  my  requirements  re- 
ceived attention.  I  had  a  letter  from  him  to  the  said 
Longfellow  in  which  the  said  Thaw  asked  the  said 
Longfellow  to  have  me  followed  by  detectives  and  also 
to  see  that  everything  I  wanted  was  done  and  to  see 
that  I  was  not  troubled  by  anybody. 

*'I  had  received  a  number  of  cablegrams  from  Thaw 
which  I  have  delivered  to  my  counsel,  Abraham  II. 
Hummel. 

''I  have  been  repeatedly  told  by  the  said  Thaw  that 
he  is  very  inimical  to  a  married  man  whom  he  said 
he  wanted  me  to  injure  and  that  Thaw  would  get  him 


200  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

into  the  penitentiary ;  that  the  said  Thaw  had  begged 
me  time  and  time  again  to  swear  to  written  documents 
which  he  had  prepared,  involving  this  married  man 
and  charging  him  with  drugging  me  when  I  was  15 
years  of  age.     This  was  not  so ;  and  I  so  told  him. 

*'But  because  I  refused  to  sign  these  papers  said 
Thaw  not  alone  threatened  me  with  bodily  injury, 
but  inflicted  on  me  the  great  bodily  injury  I  have  here- 
in described. 

' '  Subscribed  to  before  me  this  27th  day  of  October, 
1903. 

''Sworn  to  before  me  this  27th  day  of  October, 
1903.'*  (Signature  of  notary.) 

''The  state  rests,"  announced  District  Attorney 
Jerome  after  reading  the  affidavit,  and  Attorney  Del- 
mas  then  attacked  Hummel.  He  read  the  record  of 
Hummel 's  conviction  in  the  Dodge-]\Iorse  divorce  scan- 
dal, in  which  the  lawyer  was  accused— just  as  Evelyn 
Thaw  had  accused  him — of  preparing  a  false  affidavit 
and  false  testimony.  When  Hummel  was  on  the  wit- 
ness stand  he  denied  that  in  drawing  the  affidavit  he 
was  acting  as  counsel  for  Evelyn  Nesbit;  the  docu- 
ment itself  proved  that  he  was.  The  papei's  were  to 
have  been  filed,  it  was  stated,  in  a  suit  for  damages 
against  Thaw. 

More  sensations  were  ahead. 


CHAPTER     XVII. 
Jerome  Calls  Thaw  Madman. 

PHYSICIANS  ASSERT  YOUNG  MILLIONAIRE  TO  BE  DE- 
MENTED—ANGRY PROTEST  BY  DELM AS— SENSATIONAL 
ARGUMENT  BY  DISTRICT  ATTORNEY— BAD  F.VITH 
CHARGED  TO  COUNSEL— LUNACY  COMMISSION  IS  DE- 
MANDED—THAW  ^S  LETTERS  USED  TO  QUESTION  HIS 
SANITY— COURT  TAKES  QUESTION  UNDER  ADVISEMENT. 

After  the  reading  of  the  shocking  affidavit,  Dis- 
trict Attorney  Jerome  swore  five  of  the  alienists  for 
the  defense,  at  one  time.  He  sought,  through  asking 
them  the  same  hypothetical  question  put  by  the  de- 
fense, to  prove  that  Thaw  was  insane  both  at  the  time 
of  the  murder  and  at  the  time  of  the  trial. 

*'I  do  not  believe  Harry  Tha\v  was  sane  at  the 
time  he  shot  Stanford  White,  nor  do  I  believe  he  is 
sane  now,"  declared  Dr.  Graeme  M.  Hammond.  "I 
do  not  know  whether  he  will  ever  recover." 

Dr.  Smith  Ely  Jelliffe,  professor  at  Columbia 
Medical  School,  swore  he  was  convinced  Thaw  was 
crazed  at  the  time  of  the  murder,  but  that  he  "had  a 
sort  of  insane  knowledge"  of  what  he  was  doing. 

Dr.  Charles  W.  Pilgrim  asserted  Thaw  "Did  not 
know  the  nature  or  the  quality  of  his  act  on  the 
Madison  Square  Roof -garden."     Dr.  ]\Iinas  Gregory 

201 


202  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

also  swore  the  prisoner  was  insane  at  the  time  of  the 
crime,  and  others  made  the  same  statement. 

This  was  a  startling  change  of  base  for  the  prosecu- 
tion. Instead  of  trying  to  prove  the  young  million- 
aire was  sane  both  at  the  time  of  the  tragedy  and  at 
the  time  of  the  trial,  Jerome  astounded  the  legal 
world  by  endeavoring  to  prove  him  hopelessly  insane. 
The  prosecutor  had  given  up  all  hope  of  securing  a 
verdict  which  would  make  the  death-chair  the  pen- 
alty. 

Delmas  was  angry. 

**We  propose/'  he  shouted,  ** honestly  to  convince 
you,  Mr.  Jerome,  that  Thaw  was  insane  when  he  shot 
Stanford  ^\Tiite — and  sane  now — by  the  very  wit- 
nesses whom  you  have  subpoenaed  and  brought  into 
court  for  the  obvious  and  only  conceivable  purpose 
of  telling  to  this  jury  under  oath  the  truth  and  the 
whole  truth." 

The  jury  was  ordered  to  leave  during  arguments 
over  further  testimony  of  alienists. 

In  his  startling  argument  after  the  jury  retired 
Mr.  Jerome  said: 

"I  want  to  explain  and  make  my  position  clear. 
As  I  understand  the  matter  Dr.  Hamilton,  who  was 
originally  called  into  the  case  by  the  defense,  is  ready 
to  testify  that  in  his  opinion  this  defendant  was  in- 
sane, that  he  was  of  unsound  mind  when  he  com- 
mitted the  homicide,  and  that  as  he  sits  at  the  table 


CALLS  THAW  MAD3IAN  203 

today  he  is  suffering  from  a  mental  disease  known 
as  paranoia,  a  disease  in  which  the  sufferer  until  the 
last  stages  of  the  disease  is  capable  of  knowing  the 
nature  and  quality  of  his  acts. 

"I  understand  that  Dr.  Hamilton  so  advised  the 
defendant's  counsel  and  that  his  counsel  was  then 
changed. 

*'I  am  willing  to  throw  open  the  door  wide,  and 
ask  to  let  all  these  facts  come  out,  but  I  will  not  agree 
to  yir.  Delmas  confining  his  questions  to  these  four 
visits  and  keep  me  down  to  the  close  limits  of  evi- 
dence and  not  be  allowed  to  go  into  the  real  facts  of 
the  case. 

''Your  honor  knows,'*  continued  District  Attorney 
Jerome,  "what  my  position  here  has  been  all  along. 
We  have  no  right  to  be  here  trying  this  man  if  the 
real  facts  are  known.  Your  honor  knows  that  I  have 
tried  ever  since  this  case  opened  to  bring  out  these 
facts  and  that  I  have  not  been  able  to  do  so. 

"If  the  real  facts  as  to  the  mental  condition  of 
this  defendant  can  be  brought  out  the  court  would 
be  shocked  and  horrified  and  would  stop  this  trial 
instanter.  So  deeply  have  I  been  impressed  with  all 
this  that  I  have  served  notice  on  the  attorney  of 
record  that  when  this  case  is  over,  if  I  am  convinced 
they  possess  the  facts  that  I  believe  they  possess,  I 
will  lay  the  matter  before  the  Appellate  division  of 
the  Supreme  court. 


204  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

''There  is  not  a  man  who  has  seen  this  defendant 
sitting"  there  at  the  table  who  believes  he  is  capable 
of  advising-  counsel.  We  are  today  trying  a  man  , 
who  is  insane,  while  under  the  law  he  is  sane.  He  is 
a  paranoiac,  and  while  he  is  insane  he  is  not  insane 
in  the  eyes  of  the  law,  for  strictly  speaking  he  knows 
the  nature  and  quality  of  his  acts. 

''A  man  named  Taylor  went  to  death  under  ex- 
actly similar  circumstances.  The  Appellate  court 
said  that  he  was  insane,  but  he  was  a  paranoiac,  and 
while  his  act  was  committed  as  the  result  of  a  delu- 
sion, this  delusion  was  not  such  as  would  have  made 
his  act  justifiable  had  it  boen  true.  It  was  one  of 
the  most  gruesome  acts  the  law  has  ever  done. 

"In  five  minutes  time,"  cried  the  prosecutor, 
banging  his  fist  on  the  lawyers'  table,  *'I  can  show 
that  this  man  is  incapable  of  advising  his  counsel  as 
he  sits  here  in  court.  I  will  present  facts  which  will 
prevent  this  trial  from  going  further!" 

''In  view  of  the  statement  made  by  the  district 
attorney,"  said  Justice  Fitzgerald,  "I  now  ask  that 
I  be  given  all  the  information  in  the  possession  of 
either  counsel— all  the  evidence  as  to  the  defendant's 
present  state  of  mind  which  can  be  presented  to  the 
court.  I  do  this  before  instituting  the  proceedings  I 
understand  have  been  asked  for." 

Mr.  Delmas  wanted  to  know  if  a  commission  in 
lunacy  was  under  discussion. 


CALLS  THAW  3IAD3IAN  205 


( ( I 


The  court,"  replied  Justice  Fitzgerald,  "is  asked 
to  hear  testimony  while  the  jury  is  out  of  the  room, 
and  then  to  determine  its  course." 

"All  of  my  own  experts,  Dr.  Bingaman,  the  family 
physician,  and  Dr.  Deemar,  the  physician  to  the 
Copley  family,  have  informed  me,"  said  District 
Attorney  Jerome,  "that  this  man  is  suffering  from 
paranoia.  This  paranoia  is  characterized  by  systema- 
tized delusions.  While  suffering  from  one  of  these 
insane  delusions  this  man  shot  and  killed  Stanford 
White." 

"Did  your  own  experts  tell  you  that?"  inquired 
Justice  Fitzgerald  of  District  Attorney  Jerome. 

"They  certainly  did,"  replied  Mr.  Jerome,  "but 
from  the  record  of  the  case  I  was  prevented  from 
bringing  this  out.  I  was  bound  down  to  a  hypothet- 
ical question,  and  my  witnesses  testified  only  as  to  the 
hypothetical  question.  There  is  heredity  in  this  man 
which  he  cannot  avoid." 

Mr.  Delmas  again  arose  and  inquired  if  a  commis- 
sion in  lunacy  had  been  applied  for. 

"I  so  understand  it,"  said  Justice  Fitzgerald,  "if 
the  court  shall  so  decide." 

"We  are  prepared  to  combat  that  application," 
said  Mr.  Delmas. 

"I  have  made  no  formal  application,"  explained 
Mr.  Jerome.  "I  submit  to  your  honor  the  fact  as  he 
sits  there  the  defendant  is  incapable  of  directing  his 
defease.    I  leave  the  matter  entirely  to  the  court. 


>> 


206  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Mr.  Delmas  declared  Mr.  Jerome's  charges  were 
entirely  unsupported. 

"The  district  attorney's  remarks  were  made  under 
his  oath  of  office,"  said  Justice  Fitzgerald,  with  some 
display  of  feeling. 

"He  has  appealed  to  my  conscience,  and  I  now  de- 
mand the  production  of  all  the  evidence  which  any 
of  counsel  may  possess." 

Mr.  Delmas  said  he  understood  Mr.  Jerome  to 
imply  unprofessional  conduct  on  the  part  of  the 
defense  in  suppressing  testimony. 

"There  was  an  implication  of  misconduct,"  said 
Justice  Fitzgerald. 

"I  hear  of  it  today  for  the  first  time,"  said  Mr. 
Delmas. 

Mr.  Gleason  here  asked  to  be  heard  in  behalf  of 
the  defense. 

"I  desire  to  say,"  said  Mr.  Gleason,  "that  when 
this  case  began  I  attempted  to  introduce  evidence  on 
the  very  point  v\^hich  the  district  attorney  now  de- 
mands, but  it  was  ruled  out  on  his  own  objections." 

"I  remember,"  said  Justice  Fitzgerald,  "ruling 
out  such  testimony  on  the  ground  that  it  was  in  rela- 
tion to  collateral  lines." 

"We  have  made  a  perfect  defense  here,"  asserted 
Attorney  Gleason,  "and  it  is  the  duty  of  this  court 
to  submit  that  defense  to  the  jury " 

*'This  Qourt  does  not  need  any  instruQtious  as  to 


CALLS  THAW  MADMAN  207 

its  duty,"  interrupted  Justice  Fitzgerald.  ''That  is 
a  matter  the  court  can  attend  to  for  itself.  All  I 
want  is  all  of  the  information  I  can  get  on  this  sub- 
ject. The  court  wants  this  information,  but  if  I  can 
not  get  it,  I  will  have  to  act  as  I  see  fit." 

For  a  moment  all  the  lawyers  were  talking  excitedly 
at  once,  and  Justice  Fitzgerald  was  forced  to  rap 
sharply  with  his  gavel.  Finally  Mr.  Jerome  made 
himself  heard. 

*'The  court  has  asked  for  all  the  facts  I  have  in 
my  possession,  and  I  will  willingly  furnish  them.  I 
will  give  them  in  the  form  of  an  affidavit.  I  will 
also  furnish  the  affidavit  of  Dr.  ]\Iabon  and  Dr.  Mac- 
Donald,  and  if  his  professional  privilege  is  waived 
I  will  have  an  affidavit  from  Dr.  Hamilton." 

''The  learned  district  attorney  has  just  said  that 
this  defendant  is  at  this  moment  so  insane  as  not  to 
be  able  to  instruct  his  counsel,"  broke  in  Mr.  Gleason 
in  an  angry  tone,  "and  now  he  asks  that  this  man 
whom  he  has  dubbed  insane  waive  a  privilege." 

"His  attorneys  can  waive  it  for  him,"  said  Mr. 
Jerome. 

"The  district  attorney  knows  that  that  cannot  be 
done,"  was  the  reply. 

"We  will  get  the  other  affidavits  first,"  said  Jus- 
tice Fitzgerald,  "and  then  we  will  discuss  that 
matter." 

Several  other  clashes  took  place,  and  ended  in  a 


208  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

formal  demand  by  District  Attorney  Jerome  that  a 
commission  in  lunacy  be  appointed  to  pass  on  the 
mental  condition  of  Harry  Thaw,  that  the  young 
prisoner  might  be  sent  to  a  mad-house  at  once  if 
found  insane.  Justice  Fitzgerald  asked  time  to  con- 
sider the  question,  and  demanded  from  both  sides 
the  names  of  all  the  alienists  involved  in  the  case,  to 
guide  him  in  selecting  a  commission. 

Jerome  was  happy.     He  made  this  statement: 

''The  situation  is  just  what  I  have  been  looking  for 
all  during  the  trial.  A  man  who  should  be  incarce- 
rated in  an  insane  asylum  should  not  be  on  trial  for 
his  life." 

The  justice  held  a  special  session  of  court,  with  the 
jury  absent,  for  the  purpose  of  receiving  affidavits 
from  alienists  for  both  sides,  to  aid  him  in  determin- 
ing whether  or  not  a  commission  in  lunacy  should  be 
appointed.  Mr.  Jerome  called  the  court's  special 
attention  to  the  following  statements  by  Dr.  Carlos 
MacDonald : 

"After  careful  examination  of  the  exhibits  and 
the  hypothetical  question  and  the  testimony  and 
affidavits  of  Mr.  Cobb  and  assuming  evidence  stated 
in  the  case  to  be  true,  my  personal  observation,  in 
court  during  the  trial  and  also  including  certain 
observations  that  I  made  of  the  defendant  in  the 
library  of  the  district  attorney's  office  on  the  27th 
day   of  June,   1900,   I   am  of   the  opinion   that  the 


CALLS  THAW  MAD3IAN  209 

defendant  is  now  and  for  some  time  past  has  been 
suffering  from  a  form  of  mental  disease  commonly 
known  among  men  skilled  in  mental  diseases  as  para- 
noia. Yet  it  is  my  opinion,  based  upon  what  has  just 
been  enumerated,  that  when  the  defendant  killed 
Stanford  White  on  the  25th  day  of  June,  1906,  he 
was  then  suffering  from  said  mental  disease  com- 
monly known  as  paranoia,  but  that  his  then  mental 
state  was  such  that  he  knew  the  nature  and  quality 
of  the  act  that  he  was  doing  .  .  .  and  that  he  then 
and  there  knew  such  act  on  his  part  was  against  the 
current  morality  of  the  people  of  this  state  and  in 
violation  of  law. 

"I  am  of  the  opinion,  upon  the  facts  above  enumer- 
ated, that  the  mental  disease  commonly  known  as 
paranoia,  from  which  the  defendant  was  suffering 
on  the  night  of  June  25,  1906,  is  a  form  of  mental 
disease  from  which  it  is  reasonably  certain  he  will  not 
recover,  and  that  the  discharge  of  the  said  Harr^  K. 
Thaw  would  be  dangerous  to  public  peace  and  safety, 
and  that  he  should  be  committed  to  an  institution  for 
the  insane." 

In  arguing  to  secure  the  investigation  of  Thaw's 
mental  state,  Mr.  Jerome  said: 

"As  long  as  forty  days  ago.  Dr.  Austin  Flint,  one 
of  the  state's  alienists,  came  to  me  in  my  office  and 
told  me  that  after  watching  Thaw  in  court  every  day 
of  the  trial  he  was  solemnly  of  the  opinion  that  the 
defendant  was  not  capable  of  instructing  his  counsel. 


210      THE  GREAT  TEA^Y  CASE 

I  was  much  concerned,  and  with  my  assistant  and 
Drs.  MacDonald  and  Mabon  held  a  long  conference. 
I  then  called  in  other  alienists,  and  after  submitting 
to  them  all  the  evidence  I  had  in  my  possession  they 
joined  with  the  others  in  declaring  Thaw  a  paranoiac. 

"I  am  convinced  Harry  Thaw  should  be  tried  for 
his  life." 

To  strengthen  his  argument,  the  prosecutor  gave 
Justice  Fitzgerald  several  letters  written  by  Thaw  to 
J.  Dennison  Lyon,  his  Pittsburg  banker.  Some  were 
written  before  the  tragedy  and  some  while  Thaw  was 
in  the  Tombs,  but  all,  Jerome  asserted,  went  to  show 
Thaw  was  insane.  One  of  these  letters,  written  from 
the  Republican  Club,  was  as  follows : 

"Dear  Denny— I'm  sorry  that  the  manager  of  Miss 
N's  (Evelyn  Nesbit)  hotel  is  an  idiot.  She  stopped 
one  night  at  a  place  called  the  Cumberland,  but  was 
disturbed  by  street  noises.  No  one  was  moved,  and 
all  meals  were  served.  Now  she  has  a  better  place, 
with  a  nice  woman— Mrs.  Kane  (Caine),  a  friend  of 
her  family. 

'*I  never  saw  this  Sweat,  nor  spoke  nor  wrote  to 
him.     You  know  of  her  misfortunes. 

''Mr.  Holman  married  her  mother  three  years  too 
late.  He  is  trying  to  keep  her  quiet,  and  must  do  so. 
Should  the  facts  come  out,  no  one  but  would  believe 
she  sold  the  child  to  the  most  notorious  dastard  in 
New  York.     Everything  proves  it. 

I,  and  a  few  other  persons,  know  she  did  not 


i( 


CALLS  THAW  M ADM  AX  211 

mean  wrong,  but  since  infancy  she  was  jealous  of  and 
disliked  the  child,  and  was  gulled  to  an  unbelievable 
extent  by  this  blackguard  and " 

Some  rambling  letters  about  transactions  in  stocks 
followed  thLs,  and  then  came  these  letters: 

"Dear  Denny — I'm  sorry  to  trouble  you,  but  I 
don't  understand.  I  was  overdrawn  $10,063.36. 
Paid  in  $8,982.70.  (6370).  (?)  Did  you  make  a 
note  for  $10,000— leaving  my  balance  near  $9,000  or 
make  a  note  for  $1,130.85,  leaving  no  balance? 

"I  lost  almost  nothing  at  M.  C.  playing.  Just 
$1,400  for  four  weeks— a  good  deal  less  than  the  per- 
centage. I  bought  some  pearls  and  a  strong  auto- 
mobile." 

This  letter  was  written  after  the  trial  started: 

"Dear  Denny— The  package  arrived  safely,  but  I 
can't  send  them  the  slip  for  11  (eleven)  days,  as  we 
thought  it  best  to  leave  bundle  sealed  in  Gleason's 
desk  until  he  returns.  He  worked  exceedingly  hard 
circumventing  the  crooked  deal  between  Jerome's 
first  assistant  and  that  judge— and  will  combine  rest 

with  affairs.    Friday  he  starts  for  Mexico  with . 

If  needed  a  telegram  will  always  catch  him,  then  he 
could  be  back  in  two  days — if  we  see  a  chance  for 
an  early  trial  before  any  other  judge — but  we  believe 
it  will  be  first  week  January. 

"All  very  well.     Yours  very  sinc'ly, 

"H.  K  Thaw. 


212  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 


I 


<  i 


P.  S. — I  hope  these  blackmailers  try  you  again." 
The  following  peculiar  letter  no  one  in  court  could 
understand : 

"Dear  Denny — or  Frank:    Please  try  to  remember 

who  was .     K  is  said  a  relative  of  his  is  on  my 

jury.  If  he  is  friendly  or  neutral  only  write  me  a 
brief  answer,  but  if  he  had  any  trouble  with  you  or  I 
or  is  unfriendly  please  telegraph,  'The  iron  is,'  eh? 
I  will  know  what  you  mean.  I  hope  he  is  all  right, 
we  can  leave  jury  as  it  is.  Of  course,  this  is  very 
secret. 

"All  well.    Y  in  haste.  H.  K.  Thaw.^' 

The  defense  presented  evidence  equally  strong,  and 
Justice  Fitzgerald  plainly  was  in  a  quandary. 


CHAPTER     XVIII. 

Lunacy  Commission  is  Appointed. 

EVELYN  THAW  CARRIES  TRYING  INFORMATION  TO  HER 
HUSBAND— ACCUSED  ISSUES  STATEMENT— PERSONNEL 
OF  THE  COMMISSION  —  JEROME  BALKS  —  REMARKABLE 
INQUIRY  IS  RUSHED  — THAW  SUBMITS  TO  EXAMINA- 
TION—HOW   THE   YOUNG    DEFENDANT    PASSED    EASTER. 

To  the  surprise  of  every  one  connected  with  the 
case,  Justice  Fitzgerald  on  March  26,  suddenly  called 
District  Attorney  Jerome  and  the  lawyers  for  the 
defense  into  a  conference  and  announced  his  decision 
to  appoint  a  commission  to  pass  upon  the  sanity  or 
insanity  of  Harry  Thaw. 

Upon  the  verdico  of  the  three  disinterested  men 
whom  he  selected  was  to  depend  whether  Thaw  would 
ever  face  the  jury  again,  or  go  directly  to  the  Mattea- 
wan  asylum. 

The  decision  was  embodied  in  a  written  memoran- 
dum, prepared  for  the  minutes  of  the  court.  The 
court  based  his  decision  on  the  conflict  of  affidavits 
as  presented  by  the  opposing  sides,  saying  they  were 
too  diametrically  at  odds  to  permit  of  a  decision 
other  than  in  favor  of  an  impartial  inquiry.  After 
citing  the  suggestion  made  in  court  by  District  Attor- 
ney Jerome  and  the  various  affidavits  presented  on 
both  sides,  Justice  Fitzgerald's  memorandum  reads: 

213 


214  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

"I  do,  therefore,  in  pursuance  of  the  statute  in 
such  cases  made  and  provided,  hereby  appoint  Mor- 
gan J.  O'Brien,  Peter  B.  Olney  and  Leopold  Putzel, 
M.  D.,  three  disinterested  persons,  a  commission 
forthwith  to  examine  into  the  mental  condition  of 
said  Harry  K.  Thaw,  and  to  report  to  the  court  with 
all  convenient  speed  the  facts  and  their  opinion  as 
to  whether  at  the  time  of  such  examination  the  said 
Harry  K.  Thaw  was  in  such  a  state  of  idiocy,  imbe- 
cility, lunacy,  or  insanity  so  as  to  be  incapable  of 
rightly  understanding  his  own  condition,  the  nature 
of  the  charges  against  him,  and  of  conducting  his 
defense  in  a  rational  manner." 

The  task  of  announcing  the  decision  of  the  court 
to  Thaw  was  allotted  to  his  wife,  who  tearfully 
accepted  it.  Messrs.  Hartridge  and  O'Reilly  went 
with  Mrs.  Evelyn  Thaw  to  the  Tombs  and  there  in 
the  hospital  w^ard  they  met  the  prisoner.  This  ward 
had  been  placed  at  their  disposal  because  of  the 
crowd  in  the  usual  consultation  room.  Thaw  was 
cheerful. 

*  *  It  is  all  right,  dearie, ' '  he  said  to  his  waf  e,  ^ '  I  am 
not  afraid  of  a  commission.  I  am  a  sane  man  now; 
just  as  sane  as  the  judge  himself,  and  I  am  sure  that 
any  fair-minded  commission  will  so  declare  me." 

The  attorneys  quickly  withdrew  from  the  confer- 
ence and  Thaw  and  his  wife  sat  for  a  long  time  to- 
gether   discussing    what    the    commission    probably 


LUNACY  COMiMISSION  215 

would  do.  When  Mr.  Hartridge  came  out  he  de- 
clared : 

''The  fortitude  of  the  boy  [meaning  Thaw]  aston- 
ishes me  sometimes,  and  it  certainly  did  today." 

Later  in  the  afternoon  Thaw  sent  out  a  statement, 
in  which  he  said: 

''Everything  is  perfectly  satisfactory  to  me.  I  am 
sure  I  will  be  able  to  satisfy  the  commission  that  I  am 
sane  at  the  present  time.  Anything  Justice  Fitz- 
gerald does  is  all  right.  He  has  always  acted  in  a  fair 
and  impartial  manner." 

The  brothers  of  the  defendant  did  not  go  to  the 
Tombs,  but  hurried  uptown  with  the  news  of  the  com- 
mission to  their  mother  and  sisters,  who  were  waiting 
in  their  apartments.  Thaw  had  divined  the  result  of 
the  conference  with  Justice  Fit^erald  and  was  not 
in  the  least  surprised. 

The  personnel  of  the  commission  lent  a  new  dis- 
tinction to  the  already  notable  case. 

Morgan  J.  O'Brien,  a  former  justice  of  the  Appel- 
late division  of  the  Supreme  Court,  was  one  of  the 
trustees,  with  Grover  Cleveland,  of  the  Hyde  stock 
in  the  Equitable  Life  Assurance  Society  purchased 
by  Thomas  F.  Ryan  just  prior  to  the  insurance  inves- 
tigation. When  he  was  a  candidate  for  re-election 
to  the  bench  in  1901  as  a  Democrat,  Justice  O'Brien 
was  unopposed.  President  Roosevelt  made  a  trip 
from  Washington  to  Oyster  Bay  to  cast  his  ballot  for 
him. 


216  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Peter  B.  Olney,  formerly  district  attorney  of  New 
York  county,  was  a  member  with  William  C.  Whitney 
of  the  commission  appointed  in  1879  to  revise  the 
laws  of  the  state  affecting  public  interests  in  New 
York  city.    He  was  a  graduate  of  Harvard. 

Dr.  Leopold  Putzel,  the  third  member  of  the  com- 
mission, was  a  graduate  of  Bellevue  Hospital  IMedical 
School  and  had  a  long  experience  in  that  institution. 
He  qualified  before  the  State  Medical  Board  as  exam- 
iner in  lunacy. 

A  surprise  was  ahead,  however,  for  former  Justice 
O'Brien  declined  to  serve  as  a  member  of  the  board, 
after  he  had  been  sworn  in.  He  gave  ill-health  as  a 
reason.  Attorney  David  ]\IcClure,  a  well-known  re- 
form worker  in  New  York,  was  appointed  to  fill  the 
vacancy. 

When  the  commission  was  finally  in  court  together 
Harry  Thaw  was  brought  in  and  found  all  the  mem- 
bers of  his  family  awaiting  him.  He  looked  exceed- 
ingly well,  and  smiled  a  greeting  to  his' wife,  mother, 
sisters  and  brothers. 

The  commission  began  its  hearings  at  once.  At 
the  end  of  the  session,  which  was  held  behind  closed 
doors.  Attorney  Peabody  for  Thaw  announced : 

"We  are  perfectly  satisfied." 

Hardly  had  the  commission  seated  themselves  when 
Thaw  appeared.  He  was  directed  to  a  chair  within 
the  inner  counsel  rail  and  sat  directly  beneath  the 


LUNACY  COMMISSION  217 

eyes  of  the  men  whose  decision  as  to  his  mental  ca- 
pacity was  of  such  vital  import  to  him. 

Thaw  apeared  to  be  in  excellent  spirits  and  sat 
unflinchingly  under  the  steady  gaze  they  turned  upon 
him.  In  the  big  courtroom  there  were  only  the  news- 
paper reporters  and  three  of  the  prisoner's  family — 
his  wife,  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw,  who  has  never  missed 
an  opportunity  to  be  near  him  since  he  was  placed 
on  trial;  and  his  two  brothers,  Edward  and  Josiah 
Thaw.    Mrs.  Thaw  sat  between  the  brothers. 

After  the  session  had  formally  been  opened  by  the 
reading  of  the  court's  order,  Clifford  W.  Hartridge, 
acting  as  counsel  of  record  for  Thaw,  arose  and  stated 
to  the  commission  that  his  client  was  ready  at  any 
time  to  submit  to  such  examination  as  the  commission 
desired.  His  only  request  was  that  the  hearing  should 
be  private. 

*' Being  a  prisoner  on  trial  for  his  life,"  said  Mr. 
Hartridge,  *'he  feels  he  should  be  protected  as  far  as 
possible  in  this  matter." 

Chairman  McClure  then  announced  that  whatever 
examination  of  Thaw  the  commission  might  decide 
upon  would  be  held  behind  closed  doors. 

District  Attorney  Jerome  protested.  He  remarked 
that  if  the  commissioners  resolved  themselves  into  a 
body  of  medical  examiners  and  undertook  a  physical 
examination  of  the  defendant  in  private,  he  would 
not  attend  such  an  examination. 


218  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 


<  ( 


But  the  law  requires  you  to  attend  the  session 
of  the  commission,"  suggested  Chairman  MeClure. 

"I  shall  attend  all  sessions  of  the  commission  sit- 
ting as  judges  in  lunacy,"  replied  Mr.  Jerome,  "but 
I  am  not  required  to  attend  a  board  of  medical  exam- 


iners." 


Chairman  McClure  then  said  the  inquiry  the  com- 
mission had  in  mind  was  a  simple  one — to  determine 
whether  at  this  time  the  defendant  is  capable  of 
understanding  the  proceedings  against  him  and  of 
rationally  advising  his  counsel.  The  commission  de- 
sires to  limit  the  scope  of  inquiry  as  far  as  possible. 
The  court,  he  said,  wished  the  inquiry  to  be  brief  in 
order  that  the  pending  trial  might  be  disposed  of  at 
the  earliest  possible  moment.  The  commission  had 
decided  not  to  take  into  consideration  the  conflicting 
affidavits  submitted  to  Justice  Fitzgerald  by  Thaw's 
counsel  and  the  opposing  alienists,  as  they  were  con- 
sidered as  having  been  prepared  solely  for  the  infor- 
mation of  the  court. 

The  first  two  days  of  the  hearing  were  taken  up 
with  a  mental  and  physical  examination  of  Thaw, 
lie  was  asked  scores  of  questions,  but  the  nature  of 
these  never  was  made  public. 

While  the  investigation  was  in  progress  Easter 
came,  and  on  that  Sunday  afternoon  Thaw  had  a  two 
hours'  conference  with  his  wife  in  the  Tombs  prison. 
The  visit  by  Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw  was  unusual.    Never 


LUNACY  COMMISSION  219 

before  had  she  called  on  her  husband  on  Sunday.  To 
do  so  it  was  necessary  for  her  to  obtain  from  Commis- 
sioner of  Corrections  John  V.  Coggey  a  special  per- 
mit. Mr.  Coggey  granted  it  when  Mrs.  Thaw  explained 
that  she  had  been  unable  to  see  much  of  her  husband 
during  the  week  and  that  she  wanted  to  be  with  him 
some  time  on  Easter  Sunday.  Comissioner  Coggey 
went  to  the  Tombs  himself  and  remained  there  during 
the  time  that  Mrs.  Thaw  was  there. 

Before  leaving  the  Tombs  Mrs.  Thaw  said  there 
was  no  significance  attached  to  her  visit.  She  said 
she  merely  wanted  to  visit  her  husband  on  Easter. 

"Harry  is  cheerful  and  feels  confident  the  commis- 
sion will  decide  in  his  favor,"  she  said. 

Mrs.  Thaw  looked  exceptionally  pretty.  She  was 
dressed  in  a  plain  brown  tailor-made  suit.  She  wore  a 
fiat,  round  hat  of  black  straw,  such  as  women  wear  in 
riding  costume.  Her  veil  was  white  and  heavy.  She 
looked  just  a  little  pale,  and  her  expression  was  sad, 
but  she  said  she  felt  quite  well.  The  trip  to  and  from 
the  Tombs  was  made  in  the  electric  hansom  that  Mrs. 
William  Thaw,  mother  of  the  prisoner,  uses  in  going 
to  and  from  the  courthouse. 

Thaw  deviated  from  his  usual  custom  and  attended 
special  Protestant  Easter  services  conducted  in  the 
Tombs  chapel  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Sanderson.  A  special 
choir  and  orchestra  was  engaged  for  the  service. 
Thaw  seemed  to  enjoy  the  music  and  the  remarks  of 
the  minister. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 
Commission  Finds  Thaw  Sane. 

CRISIS  IN  CASE  IS  REACHED— BLOW  TO  JEROME— EVELYN 
CARRIES  GLAD  TIDINGS  TO  PRISONER  — THAW  EXPRESSES 
NO  SURPRISE— PROSECUTOR  THREATENS  TO  APPEAL,  BUT 
BOWS  TO  FINDING. 

One  of  the  most  dramatic  phases  of  the  great  trial 
was  at  hand.  The  defense  suddenly  announced  it 
had  closed  its  case  before  the  lunacy  commission,  and 
after  a  private  examination  of  Thaw  by  the  board  Dr. 
Allen  R.  Diefendorf  told  the  members  that  Thaw  was 
a  paranoic  and  had  not  recovered  his  sanity.  "Thaw 
is  insane  now,"  he  swore. 

The  crisis  came  on  the  morning  of  April  4,  1907. 
After  a  session  lasting  nearly  all  night  the  commis- 
sioners filed  into  court  and  Chairman  McClure  handed 
the  following  report  to  Justice  Fitzgerald  : 

* 'After  careful  examination  of  the  defendant  per- 
sonally and  of  all  the  evidence  we  find  the  following 
facts: 

"In  the  frequent  and  in  some  cases  daily— during 
the  several  months  last  past— intercourse  had  by  the 
defendant  with  the  Tombs  physicians,  chaplains,  keep- 
ers, other  attendants,  and  the  probation  officer  these 

220 


COMMISSION  SAYS  SANE  221 

persons  failed  to  discover  anything  irrational  in  his 
conduct  or  speech. 

"The  defendant  has  taken  an  active  part  in  the 
conduct  of  the  trial,  has  made  numerous  suggestions 
orally  in  court  and  by  letter  as  to  the  selection  of  jur- 
ors and  the  examination  of  witnasses.  Many  of  these 
suggestions  were  deemed  valuable  and  were  adopted 
by  his  counsel,  and  examination  of  the  letters  referred 
to  shows  that  generally  the  suggestions  contained  in 
them  were  material,  sensible,  and  apparently  the  pro- 
duct of  a  sane  mind. 

"While  the  testimony  of  numerous  experts  called 
by  the  district  attorney  and  the  defendant's  counsel  is 
irreconcilable,  that  given  by  certain  experts  who  per- 
sonally examined  the  defendant  during  the  trial  and 
since  the  appointment  of  the  commission,  and  who  of 
all  the  alienists  examined  had  greatest  opportunity  of 
observing,  disclosed  the  fact  that  no  indication  of  in- 
sanity at  the  present  could  be  found  in  the  speech, 
conduct,  or  physical  condition  of  the  defendant. 

"The  direct  oral  and  physical  examination  of  the 
defendant  by  the  commissioners  themselves  disclosed 
no  insanity  in  the  defendant  at  the  present  time. 
Upon  all  of  the  facts  it  is  our  opinion  that  at  the  time 
of  our  examination  the  said  Harry  K.  Thaw  was  and  is 
sane  and  was  not  and  is  not  in  a  state  of  idiocy,  im- 
becility, lunacy,  or  insanity  so  as  to  be  incapable  of 
rightly  understanding  his  own  condition,  the  nature 


I 


222  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

of  the  charges  against  him,  and  of  conducting  his  de- 
fense in  a  rational  manner. 

^' David  McClure, 
''Peter  B.  Olney, 
''Leopold  Putzel/' 

This  was  a  staggering  blow  to  Jerome,  who  pro- 
tested loudly.  The  defense  was  elated.  Thaw  was 
not  in  court  to  hear  the  decision,  and  the  jurors  also 
were  barred.  All  the  members  of  the  prisoner's  family, 
however,  were  present,  and  Evelyn  Thaw  herself  con- 
veyed the  glad  news  to  her  husband.  Harry  was  not 
surprised  at  the  finding. 

''It  is  only  what  I  expected,*'  he  declared.  ''I  am 
as  sane  as  any  man  on  earth. '  * 

The  district  attorney,  who  had  been  threatening  to 
"appeal  to  the  Appellate  court  and  have  the  trial 
stopped,"  suddenly  decided  to  yield  to  the  inevitable. 


CHAPTER  XX. 
Delmas,  Nestor  of  "Western  Bar. 

SWAYS  JURYMEN  BY  HIS  ELOQUENCE— WAS  BRILLIANT  AS 
A  STUDENT— HONORED  BY  SANTA  CLARA  ACADEMY — 
STARTS  POOR,  AMASSES  A  FORTUNE— DELMAS '  METHODS 
—IMPORTANT  CASES  HE  HAS  CONDUCTED. 

The  supreme  moment  for  the  defense  came  on  April 
8,  when  Delphin  M.  Delmas,  the  master  orator  of  the 
Pacific  coast  bar,  arose  to  address  the  jury  in  what 
proved  to  be  the  greatest  forensic  effort  heard  in  a  New 
York  court  since  the  days  of  Daniel  Webster. 

Twelve  jurymen  sat  spell-bound  under  the  sway  of 
his  eloquence.  One  wept.  A  mute,  absorbed  and  sym- 
pathetic audience  listened — the  judge,  bending  for- 
ward, his  eyes  fixed  eagerly  on  Delmas ;  the  defendant 
hanging  on  the  words  that  he  hoped  would  set  him 
free ;  the  wife,  the  mother,  the  sister — their  faces  dis- 
torted with  the  pain  of  suspense — clutching  their 
chairs,  clenching  their  hands — all  the  while,  rising  and 
falling  in  waves  of  emotion,  the  voice  of  Delmas  echo- 
ing a  masterful  plea  for  the  life  of  Harry  Thaw. 

Delmas  himself  proved  little  less  interesting  than 
his  wonderful  argument.  He  first  attracted  attention 
in  1856  as  a  brilliant  young  student  in  Santa  Clara 
college  in  California. 

The  following  sketch  of  his  life  was  published  in 
the  History  of  the  Bench  and  Bar  of  California : 

223 


224  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Mr.  Delmas  was  graduated  in  1862,  and  in  1863  re- 
ceived the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  with  the  highest 
honors.  Entering  the  law  department  of  Yale  College, 
he  received  from  that  University,  in  1865,  the  degree 
of  Bachelor  of  Laws,  dnd  at  the  same  time  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar  of  the  State  of  Connecticut.  Re- 
turning shortly  thereafter  to  California,  he  was  ad- 
mitted in  February,  1866,  in  the  Supreme  Court.  In 
May  of  that  year  he  opened  an  office  in  San  Jose. 

Mr.  Delmas  remained  at  the  bar  in  San  Jose  for  six- 
teen years ;  and,  in  that  period,  acquired  a  reputation 
for  skill  and  ability  of  the  first  order.  He  had  also 
great  prosperity  from  the  standpoint  of  finance.  He 
early  held  the  office,  so  important  and  lucrative  in 
that  rich  section,  of  District  Attorney.  He  was  a 
public  speaker  of  acknowledged  force  and  grace.  By 
his  knowledge,  talents  and  address  he  gathered  around 
him  more  friends  and  clients  that  any  other  man  of 
his  age  in  the  State.  Setting  forth  without  money  re- 
sources he  amassed  a  fortune.  It  did  not  take  long  to 
accomplish  all  this;  and  when  his  fame  had  spread 
through  and  beyond  the  State,  he  left  the  field  where 
his  most  splendid  visions  had  been  realized,  and  es- 
tablished himself  in  San  Francisco.  This  was  on  the 
1st  of  February,  1883. 

When  Mr.  Delmas  had  been  in  San  Francisco  about 
six  years,  we  said  of  him  that  no  lawyer  in  this  State 
I)ossessed  broader  knowledge  or  was  a  greater  master 


DELMAS  225 

of  his  profession  than  he.  As  an  advocate  he  is  the 
admiration  of  the  bar  itself.  His  remarkable  clear 
vision,  his  subtle  intellect,  his  piercing  judgment,  his 
power  of  statement,  have  been  applauded  by  the  vet- 
erans of  the  profession.  Before  a  jury,  he  is  argu- 
mentative or  pathetic,  as  the  occasion  demands.  Unlike 
some  other  advocates  of  brilliant  parts,  he  keeps  in 
mind  the  fact  that  "the  jury  are  sworn  to  make  a  true 
deliverance,  and  that  to  address  their  passions  is 
equivalent  to  asking  them  to  violate  their  oaths. ' '  Mr. 
Delmas  is  very  painstaking  in  the  preparation  of 
causes  and  very  skillful  in  their  management.  He  has 
great  capacity  for  applying  himself  to  his  subject. 
In  the  matter  of  evidence  his  method  is  noticeable. 
His  system  is  to  make  himself,  before  the  case  is  an- 
swered "ready,"  accurately,  mathematically  if  pos- 
sible, master  of  all  the  facts  of  the  controversy,  and 
especially,  of  those  which  are  favorable  to  his  adver- 
sary. Upon  the  trial,  he  takes  full  notes  of  every- 
thing that  is  said  and  done.  It  is  an  article  of  faith 
with  him  to  state  evidence  to  the  jury  with  absolute 
accuracy;  and  he  almost  invariably  prefaces  his  argu- 
ment with  a  courteous  invitation  to  his  adversary  not 
to  hesitate  to  interrupt  and  correct  him  in  case  he 
shoukl  in  advertently  fall  into  an  error. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  enumerate  the  cases  in 
which  Mr.  Delmas  has  taken  part.  His  practice  has 
been  confined  to  no  specialty,  but  has  extended  to  all 


226  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

branches  of  litigation.  He  has  figured  in  almost  every 
important  case  which  has  been  before  the  courts  dur- 
ing the  last  twenty  years.  The  most  celebrated  of  these 
is,  perhaps,  that  of  Ellen  M.  Colton  vs.  Leland  Stan- 
ford, Charles  Crocker,  and  C.  P.  Huntington,  in  which 
Mr.  Delmas,  who  had  for  associates  ex-Chief  Justice 
William  T.  Wallace,  ex-Judge  John  A.  Stanly,  Hon. 
George  R.  B.  Hayes  and  G.  Frank  Smith,  was  the 
senior  counsel  for  the  plaintiff.  This  case,  if  regard 
be  had  to  the  eminence  of  the  counsel  engaged,  the 
standing  of  the  litigants,  the  amount  involved,  the  na- 
ture of  the  issues,  and  the  duration  of  the  trial,  is, 
doubtless,  the  most  important  that  has  been  tried  in 
California  in  the  last  quarter  of  a  century.  The  trial 
lasted  eighteen  months— from  November,  1883,  to 
May,  1885.  The  arguments  alone  consumed  nearly 
five  months.  Mr.  Delmas  closed  the  case,  answering 
Hall  McAllister  and  J.  P.  Hoge,  who  had  immediately 
preceded  him. 

Since  he  was  elected  District  Attorney  of  Santa 
Clara  County,  in  1867,  Mr.  Delmas  has  never  been  a 
candidate  for  any  office,  having  devoted  himself  en- 
tirely to  the  practice  of  his  profession.  He  was,  how- 
ever, appointed  a  regent  of  the  University  of  Cali- 
fornia by  Governor  Stoneman,  in  1884,  and  served 
until  1892.  While  regent  he  was  President  of  the  day 
on  the  occasion  of  the  inauguration  of  Hon.  Horace 
Davis  as  President  of  the  university,  March  23,  1888, 
and  delivered  the  address  of  welcome. 


DELMAS  227 

In  1869,  Mr.  Delmas  married  a  daughter  of  Colonel 
Joseph  P.  Hoge,  of  San  Francisco.  There  are  four 
children  of  this  union  one  of  whom  is  the  wife  of 
William  S.  Barnes,  ex-District  Attorney  of  San  Fran- 
cisco. Mr.  Delmas  occupies  offices  at  120  Broadway, 
New  York  City. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 
Delmas  Moves  Jurors. 

DECLARES  HE  BASES  DEFENSE  ON  LAW— EXPRESSES  SYM- 
PATHY FOR  WHITENS  WIDOW— ** SADDEST  STORY  EVER 
HEARD  IN  A  COURT  OF  JUSTICE  ^^—^^  BETTER  FOR  STAN- 
FORD WHITE  HAD  HE  NEVER  BEEN  BORN^' — SCORES 
EVELYN  thaw's  MOTHER  WITHOUT  MERCY. 

"If  your  honor  please,  and  you,  gentlemen  of  the  jury, 
we  have  no  more  right,  if  the  real  facts  were  knowTi,  to  be 
here  trying  this  prisoner  at  the  bar  than  if  it  was  prohibited 
by  statute, ' '  declared  Mr.  Delmas  in  opening  his  masterful 
address. 

' '  Had  you  heard  these  words  from  any  irresponsible  per- 
sons, instead  of  having  heard  them  from  an  official  charged 
with  a  public  duty;  had  you  heard  them  from  a  man  given  to 
irresponsible  talk,  instead  of  in  this  court  of  justice  and  sol- 
emnity; had  the  occasion  on  which  they  were  uttered  been 
some  trivial  discussion  about  an  insignificant  topic,  instead  of 
where  the  discussion  is  one  of  life  or  death — these  words 
might  not  have  filled  you  with  amazement,  but  this  was  a 
statement  made  by  the  district  attorney.. 

' '  To  show  the  falsity  of  that,  it  will  be  necessary  to  call 
upon  all  the  energy  in  my  power  to  reach  a  conclusion.  And 
to  reverse,  at  least  in  a  general  way,  the  same  points  of  the 
evidence  which  you  have  heard  for  so  many  days  I  shall  make 
no  attempt  to  inflame  your  passion,  no  appeal  to  make  your 
feelings  warp  your  judgment. 

' '  I  shall  rely  on  no  such  unstable  thing  as  the  supposed 
unwritten  law.  I  will  base  the  fate  of  this  defendant  on  the 
law  of  thig  state — the  law  of  the  books,  the  written  l?^w, 

228 


JURORS  MOVED  229 

* '  In  the  performance  of  my  task  it  will  become  my  duty 
to  speak  of  the  dead.  I  shall  not  be  unmindful  of  the  in- 
junctions of  the  departed.  Only  that  which  is  good  should 
be  spoken,  but  T  cannot  forget  the  circumstances  under  which 
the  protection  of  the  living  demand  that  the  truth  shall  be 
told,  no  matter  how  it  blights  the  memory  of  the  dead  or  how 
painful  to  the  survivors. 

**  Under  that  law  we  find  ample  protection  for  his  rights 
and  life  and  to  that  law  I  shall  resort  as  to  the  horns  of  the 
altar,  for  his  safety.  In  the  performance  of  my  task  it  will  be 
my  imperative  duty — unshunable  duty — to  speak  of  the  dead. 

"I  shall  not  be  unmindful  of  him  and  shall  speak  in  no 
other  terms — if  possible — than  those  of  praise.  I  shall  not 
forget  that  for  the  protection  of  the  living  the  truth  must  be 
told,  no  matter  how  painful  to  the  dead  or  those  who  survive 
him. 

' '  Of  those  survivors  I  can  speak  in  no  other  terms  than 
those  of  the  most  profound  sympathy.  For  the  widow  who 
mourns  and  the  son  who  survives  I  have  no  words  than  those 
of  sympathy.  Gladly  would  I  remove  from  them,  were  it  in 
my  power,  the  cloud  which  must  henceforth  accompany  their 
life,  and  gladly  would  I  remove  from  the  young  man  the 
sentence  that  the  sins  of  the  father  must  be  visited  upon 
their  children  to  the  second  and  third  generations. 

"Gentlemen,  the  story  you  have  listened  to  is  the  story 
of  two  young  persons  whom  fate,  by  inscrutable  decree,  had 
destined  to  link  together,  that  they  could  walk  through  life 
together.  It  is  a  story — the  saddest,  most  mournful  and 
tragic  which  the  tongue  of  man  has  ever  uttered  or  the  ear 
of  man  has  ever  heard  in  a  court  of  justice. 

* '  Let  me  begin  briefly  with  the  story — one  filled  with  in- 
cidents with  which  a  volume  might  overflow  and  a  tragedy 
night  be  filled,  as  though  it  were  written  by  the  hand  of  a 
Shakespeare. 


230  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

''She  was  born  on  Christmas,  1884,  in  the  state  of  Penn- 
sylvania, in  the  city  of  Pittsburg,  The  first  years  of  her 
childhood  saw  her  lose  her  father  and  natural  protector  and 
left  her  in  charge  of  a  mother  who  early  manifested  a  char- 
acter of  frivolity  and  extravagance  which  was  later  to  be  at- 
tended with  such  fatal  consequences. 

"At  ten  years  of  age  the  family  began  to  feel 
the  pangs  of  want,  the  sufferings  of  poverty  and  the  gnawing 
of  hunger.  At  twelve  she  began  to  be  the  family  drudge, 
assisting  her  mother  in  such  acts  as  she  could  perform.  And 
thus  the  family  continued  moving  from  place  to  place  without 
any  fixed  habitation  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 

"But  nature  having  endowed  her  with  beauty  which 
showed  in  early  youth,  we  find  her  looking  to  it  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  family.  At  fourteen  we  find  her  in  Philadelphia, 
already  embarked  upon  the  perilous  seas  of  an  artist's  model's 
life.  But  New  York  was  the  market  in  which  such  gifts  were 
most  eagerly  sought  and  would  be  dearly  paid  for.  And  to 
New  York  the  family  came,  and  by  the  efforts  of  the  mother 
the  employment  begun  in  Philadelphia  was  continued  here  and 
the  beautiful  child  went  from  studio  to  studio  and  at  the  end 
of  the  week  paid  into  the  hands  of  the  mother  the  scant  few 
dollars  she  had  earned  to  support  the  mother,  the  brother  and 
the  child. 

"But  the  large  metropolis  afforded  broader  avenues  of 
gain  than  the  mere  studios  of  artists — the  stage,  with  all  its 
tinsel  and  glare  of  dazzling  lights  lay  before  them  and  the 
tempter  came. 

' '  The  theatrical  manager  found  the  girl  at  fifteen  and  em- 
ployed her  at  $15  a  week,  where  she  slaved  at  night  as  she 
did  by  day — posing  for  artists — but  at  night  she  appeared 
on  the  boards  of  the  stage. 

"Tt  could  not  be  long,  for  the  beauty  with  which  she  was 
gifted  attracted  attention  and  the  tempter  came.     He  saw,  he 


JURORS  MOVED  231 

desired  to  have,  with  the  consummate  cunning  of  a  man  whose 
head  had  already  grown  gray.  He  had  a  wife  and  an  ac- 
complished son.  He  fixed  his  eyes  upon  the  fated  child  and 
determined  to  make  her  his. 

' '  To  win  her  he  had  none  of  the  graces  which  a  man  of  her 
own  age  might  present.  He  was  already  married  and  had 
a  family  of  his  own  and  any  such  thought  of  love — legitimate 
love — between  him  and  this  child  was  out  of  the  question.  He 
introduced  himself  into  the  family  in  the  guise  of  a  protector. 

*  *  His  tender  solicitude  manifested  his  intentions  to 
ameliorate  their  condition.  He  won  his  way  into  the  con- 
fidence of  the  mother;  established  himself  in  the  position  of 
a  protecting  attitude  toward  the  family.  When  his  purpose 
was  secured  he  persuaded  the  mother  to  absent  herself  from 
the  city,  assuring  her  the  child  would  be  safe  in  his  hands  in 
hr  absence,  telling  the  family  that  they  should  rejoice  that 
they  had  such  a  careful  eye  to  watch  over  the  beautiful  child. 
She  went.     The  child  was  left  alone. 

*'I  wish,  gentlemen,  it  were  in  my  power  to  pass  over  the 
scene  which  followed.  I  wish  it  did  not  have  to  be  embodied 
in  the  argument  I  have  to  make  to  you. 

' '  To  one  of  those  dens  fitted  with  all  the  splendor  and 
dazzling  beauty  with  which  this  man  of  genius  endowed  his 
places,  this  child  was  one  evening  lured,  under  the  pretense 
that  there  were  to  be  others  there  to  share  the  supper  that  had 
been  prepared,  and  when  she  arrived  she  found  herself  alone 
with  the  man  who  had  promised  to  be  her  protector. 

'  *  Need  I  recount  to  you  how  the  child  was  led  from  one 
step  to  another  until  plied  with  wine  and  plied  with  drugs 
she  became  unconscious  and  this  man,  who  had  promised  to 
protect  the  child,  accomplished  her  ruin  and  downfall?  Need 
I  recall  to  you  the  terrible  scenes  which  you  heard  told  from 
the  lips  of  this  tortured  victim? 

*  *  Oh,  better  for  Stanford  White  had  he  never  been  born. 


232  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

''Better  that  his  ears  had  never  been  opened  that  he  could 
not  have  heard  the  words  of  anguish  of  the  victim. 

''For  what  had  he — a  man  whose  hair  was  already  gray — 
what  had  he  done?  Jle  had  perpetrated  the  most  horrible 
crime  that  can  deface  the  human  heart.  He  had  lured  the 
poor,  innocent  flower  that  was  struggling  forth  to  life.  He 
had  committed  a  crime  which  is  a  felony — which  the  President 
of  this  republic  in  his  last  message  to  Congress  said  should 
be  punished  by  death. 

"He  who  had  erected  altars  and  sanctuaries  and  churches 
crowned  with  the  emblem  of  the  Redemption — had  he  forgot- 
ten the  words. 

' '  '  Who  so  receiveth  such  a  little  child  in  my  name  re- 
ceiveth  me,  but  whosoever  offendeth  such  a  little  one,  it  were 
better  that  a  millstone  were  tied  around  his  neck  and  he  were 
cast  into  the  sea.' 

"Oh,  ye  who  have  erected  temples  to  the  God  of  Abraham, 
Isaac  and  Jacob,  have  ye  forgotten  the  words  of  Jehovah, 
when  upon  the  return  from  Egypt  He  said: 

"  'Ye  shall  not  afflict  a  fatherless  child.  I  will  surely 
hear  that  cry,  and  I  will  kill  you  with  the  sword  and  your 
wives  shall  be  widows  and  your  children  fatherless.' 

"Oh,  Stanford  White,  in  the  entirety  of  your  hardened 
heart,  you  imagined  that  the  cry  of  the  fatherless  child  which 
that  night  was  heard  in  the  darkness  of  the  great  city,  where 
good  citizens  were  at  rest,  the  child  without  a  father,  the 
child  deserted  by  her  mother,  the  child  left  alone  in  this  city 
of  millions,  would  not  be  heard. 

"Did  your  hardened  heart  imagine  that  God  would  not 
hear  that  cry?  Did  you  imagine  that  Ho  had  forgotten  the 
promise  He  made — that  any  one  who  afflicted  a  fatherless 
child  would  surely  die? 

"Did   you  believe  that  the   retribution  would  bo  omitted? 

"Better  had  it  been  for  him  had  he  died  before  that  day, 


DELMAS  233 

for  then  he  might  have  died  in  glory — he  might  have  died 
when  public  mourning  would  have  attended  his  obsequies;  he 
might  have  died  before  his  name  had  become  a  byword;  before 
his  genius  had  become  an  aggravation. 

''But  fate  had  decreed  it  otherwise.  The  poor  child, 
returning  to  her  senses,  not  realizing  what  had  been 
done,  was  taken  back  to  her  home,  there  to  sit  in  lonely  vigil 
until  he  went  back  the  next  day  to  complete  the  pollution  he 
had  but  partially  begun  the  night  before.  It  remained  for 
him  to  destroy  the  last  vestige  of  womanly  honor  in  her  mind, 
and  he  performed  that  task  after  daylight  that  day. 

* '  He  went  there — he,  the  strong  man,  kissed  the  hem  of 
her  garment ;  told  her  to  dry  her  tears,  and  to  stifle  her 
moans;  told  her  that  what  she  did  was  not  wrong,  that  it  was 
but  what  all  women  did;  that  the  only  sin  was  to  be  found 
out,  and  that  if  she  would  but  keep  the  dread  secret  pent  up 
in  her  breast  and  not  tell  her  mother  all  would  be  well;  that 
all  women  were  wicked;  that  the  only  distinction  was  that 
some  succeeded  in  concealing  their  vices,  while  others  were 
found  out. 

*  *  And  so  he  left  her.  And  so  he  lured  her  again  and  again, 
plying  her  with  wine  in  the  same  dens  for  a  couple  of  months. 

' '  Is  this  story  true,  gentlemen,  or,  rather,  is  the  story 
I  have  related  to  you  the  story  Evelyn  Nesbit  told  Harry 
Thaw  in  June,  1903,  in  Paris — that,  gentlemen,  is  one  of 
the  main  questions  which  you  have  to  decide  in  this  case  and 
in  the  elucidation  of  which  I  may  be  permitted  to  occupy  a 
little  of  your  attention. 

* '  The  prosecution  says  this  story  is  a  clever  lie — the  result 
of  the  imagination  of  this  defendant's  wife.  Your  first  in- 
quiry must  be  into  the  veracity  of  Evelyn  Nesbit.  If  she 
never  told  Thaw  this  thing,  then  she  has  been  an  untruthful 
witness  before  you. 

"She   gave    this    testimony:    'And   those    things   you    told 


234  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Mr.  Thaw  of  the  outrages  at  the  hands  of  White  were  true?' 
Her  answer  was,  '  Those  things  were  true. ' 

*'In  corroboration  of  the  statement  that  these  things  did 
take  place,  I  beg  to  refer  to  the  evidence  and  to  the  things 
that  have  occurred  before  your  eyes.  You  have  seen  Evelyn 
on  the  stand  for  four  days.  You  are  men  of  the  world — men 
accustomed  to  looking  through  the  souls  of  men  and  analyzing 
their  conversations — you  are  asked  to  judge  if  she  were  a 
clever  actress  as  she  sat  in  that  chair  and  related  the  horrors 
of  that  night. 

''You  saw  when  she  came  to  the  final  occurrence  of  that 
night — you  saw  her  countenance — how  the  shadow  of  horror 
overspread  it.  Although  the  story  was  to  save  the  life  of  the 
one  person  whom  she  loved,  you  saw  how  she  shrank  from 
telling  it.  You  saw  the  drawn  face,  you  saw  the  brave  little 
girl  struggling  that  she  might  save  her  husband,  that  she 
might  overcome  the  objectionable  features  of  the  story. 

"For  days  and  days  you  have  seen  her  undergoing  torture 
of  an  examination  unparalleled  in  the  jurisprudence  of  this  or 
any  other  country. 

"Did  the  District  Attorney  of  your  city,  to  whom  I  gave 
the  greatest  acknowledgment  of  talent,  confuse  her?  You  saw 
him  using  all  the  arts,  resorting  to  all  the  strategies  of  a 
practiced  master  to  entrap  a  girl  who  had  never  testified  be- 
fore. Was  she  caught  in  a  single  falsehood,  or  contradic- 
tion? 

"You  have  seen  learned  men  on  the  stand — tell  me,  if  you 
have  ever  seen  a  witness  who  has  stood  t*he  excruciating 
tests  of  cross-examination  as  well  as  this  child? 

"Gentlemen,  in  that  cross-examination  the  merciless  Dis- 
trict Attorney — I  say  merciless  without  offense,  because  his 
office  is  not  one  of  mercy — you  saw  him  extort  from  her 
truthful  but  unwilling  lips  the  confession  that  the  misdeeds 
of   Stanford   White   did  not  stop   with  the  first  wrecking   of 


DELMAS  235 

her  life,  but  continued  until  God  asserted  himslf  in  her  and 
she  would  no  longer  be  the  plaything  and  toy  of  this  man. 

' '  I  ask  you,  on  your  oaths,  if  this  girl  had  fabricated  this 
story,  would  not  she  or  the  others  who  prompted  the  story 
have  for  the  sake  of  sympathy,  said  that  the  first  drugging 
was  the  only  occurrence  and  that  she  had  shrunk  from  further 
dealings  with  such  a  man. 

*  'Upon  any  other  theory  than  that  the  story  is  true  I  ask 
you  the  question,  why  did  Stanford  "White  just  at  that  moment 
see  fit  to  remove  the  mother — the  only  protector  left  this  child 
— from  her  post  as  sentinel?  Why  was  the  mother  sent  to 
Pittsburg  with  money  furnished  by  Stanford  White?  Why 
was  the  brother  sent  to  school? 

**  Gentlemen,  I  desire  to  call  your  attention  to  this  point. 
During  this  time  Stanford  White  made  a  contract  to  pay 
Evelyn  the  sum  of  $25  a  week  during  the  time  she  should  be 
unable  to  obtain  her  own  living  on  the  stage.  And  during 
that  one  year  we  have  discovered — by  a  strange  fatality  which 
ever  seems  to  assist  the  cause  of  justice  and  to  disconcert 
the  cause  of  injustice — there  apears  certain  checks  on  which 
the  name  of  the  mother  was  indorsed. 

"And,  according  to  a  computation  made  by  some  gentle- 
man in  court,  the  mother,  for  the  year  following  the  ruin  of 
the  child,  received  $2,500,  in  round  numbers,  $200  a  month. 
And  yet  the  District  Attorney  tells  you  that  at  the  same  time 
Stanford  White  was  in  embarrassed  circumstances. 

*  '  One  circumstance  I  desire  to  call  to  your  attention.  It 
relates  to  the  assistance  which  the  prosecution  draws  in  its 
attempt  to  deprive  Evelyn  of  her  husband.  You  will  recall 
that  when  the  name  of  the  mother  was  spoken  I  disclaimed 
having  said  anything  that  would  cast  upon  the  mother  any 
shame  that   would  cast   reproach  upon   her. 

*  'Cicntlemen,  at  the  time  I  made  that  declaration,  I  wish 
you  to  bear  in  mind  that  three  things  had  not  been  developed: 


236      THE  GREAT  THA^Y  CASE 

*  'First.  Tliat  the  mother  had  been  in  receipt  of  $200  a 
month  from  White. 

**It  had  not  been  developed  at  that  time  that  the  mother 
was  assisting  the  prosecution  in  the  work  of  this  case. 

"It  had  not  been  developed  at  that  time  that  the  mother 
had  given  a  written  statement  to  the  District  Attorney  by 
which  he  might  torture  the  soul  of  her  daughter,  a  daughter 
who  had  been  left  alone  in  the  world  except  for  a  most  un- 
natural  mother. 

''And  when  I  saw  the  District  Attorney  with  that  paper 
in  his  hand,  when  1  heard  him  read  from  it  on  the  cross- 
examination  of  this  girl,  when  I  learned  that  every  shaft 
which  he  aimed  at  her  heart  came  from  a  quiver  furnished  by 
her  mother,  when  I  learned  that  every  sore  in  her  poor  soul 
had  been  pointed  out  to  the  District  Attorney,  that  it  was 
a  mother  who  was  pointing  out  those  sores,  and  when  I  learned 
that  the  poor  little  girl  had  been  sent  away  to  school  so  that 
she  might  get  the  money  she  desired  from  Stanford  White — 
I  now  retract  what  I  then  said. 

'  'Oh,  most  unnatural  mother,  you,  who  left  the  girl  a  vic- 
tim of  the  lust  of  this  gray-haired  man!  You  who  received 
the  wages  of  her  downfall,  funds  with  which  you  bedecked 
yourself  with  diamonds  and  finery,  now  in  the  hour  of  her 
supreme  agony  this  mother  assists  the  prosecutor  of  her  hus- 
band! 

"Why,  a  beast  that  wants  reason  protects  her  young!  I 
have  seen  a  poor  little  bird  no  larger  than  your  fist  while  I  was 
out  hunting.  A  number  of  young  ones  were  playing  in  the 
dust  around  her  and  I  have  seen  a  pointer  come  running  upon 
them  and  I  have  seen  the  little  bird  ruffle  its  feathers  until  it 
looked  as  big  and  old  as  an  eagle,  making  the  dog  pause  and 
return  abashed. 

' '  I  have  now  laid  before  you  in  outline  what  was  given  you 
in  evidence.     I  propose  to  prove    by  evidence  that  will  demon- 


DEL3IAS  237 

strate  the  truth,  which  ^\ill  leave  no  hook  upon  which  to  hang 
a  doubt,  that  Evelyn  Nesbit  told  the  story  she  swears  she  did 
in  Paris  in  1903. 

' '  In  the  first  place,  you  have  the  undoubted,  undisputed 
fact  that  Mr.  Thaw  in  September  of  that  year,  when  Evelyn 's 
mother  returned  to  '^ew  York — that  Mr.  Thaw  narrated  that 
story  in  a  letter  to  his  counsel,  Mr.  Longfellow.  In  the  first 
letter  he  says: 

' '  '  Mistress  Nesbit  sails  to-morrow  for  New  York.  Her 
daughter  can't  be  wuth  her,  because  Miss  N.  was  beguiled 
by  a  blackguard  when  she  was  but  fifteen  years  of  age. 
The  child  was  drugged. 

*'And  in  a  later  letter  to  Mr.  Longfellow  he  says:  'Her 
position  could  not  be  worse.  She  was  poisoned  at  fifteen  and 
three-quarters.     Also  since.* 

^'Now,  gentlemen,  bear  in  mind  that  these  two  letters 
were  written  by  Mr.  Thaw  in  Paris  to  his  counsel,  Mr. 
Longfellow,  in  New  York.  I  ask  you  who  is  the  blackguard 
referred  to  in  these  letters  if  not  Stanford  White?  What  is 
the  superhuman  negligence  of  the  mother,  if  not  her  trip  to 
Pittsburg,  leaving  her  daughter  alone  in  New  York? 

''How  was  the  child  beguiled,  if  not  by  Stanford  White's 
paternal   kindness   and   show   of  parental   goodness? 

' '  I  leave  it  to  you  as  to  what  these  two  letters  can  refer 
to  if  not  to  the  story  Evelyn  Nesbit  says  she  told  Harry  in 
Paris  in  June,  1903. 

"She  told  how  she  had  learned  this  young  woman's  name. 
He  said  he  desired  to  shield  her  from  the  awful  consequences 
of  the  deed.  W^hat  was  it  the  child  that  had  come  from 
Pittsburg,  that  had  first  posed  as  an  artist 's  model,  and  had 
then  gone  on  the  stage — Avhat  was  it  she  had  told  Harry 
Thaw  and  what  had  he  told  his  mother? 

"The  learned  prosecutor  says  that  he  invented  it  all. 
After   inventing    did   he   go   home   and    tell   his   mother — the 


238    ,  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

mother  who  had  given  him  birth,  who  had  nourished  him  at 
her  breast,  who  had  watched  him  in  his  sleepless  bed  at  night 
as  he  was  giving  evidence  of  the  troubles  which  \\ere  to 
have  such  a  bearing  on  this  case? 

''When  he  broke  down  in  church  and  tears  fell  from  his 
eyes  and  a  groan  broke  from  his  lips  was  he  telling,  was  he 
acting  a  lie; 

Harry  Thaw  loved  Evelyn.  He  had  loved  her  ever  since 
he  saw  her  in  1901.  He  had  loved  and  wooed  her  honorably, 
and  honorably  sought  to  make  her  his  wife. 

"I  make  these  assertions  just  before  seeking  to  make  any 
deductions  from  them.  It  is  meet  and  proper  that  I  estab- 
lish them  as  facts.  As  early  as  1901,  when  he  found  her  on 
the  stage,  be  realized  that  was  not  a  fit  place  for  a  young 
girl  like  her.  He  was  contemplating  sending  her  to  school — 
that  is  to  say  for  three  years.  Then  she  might  come  out,  and 
take  her  station  in  the  world  as  his  wife. 

**Aud  if  not,  even  though  she  did  not  become  his  wife, 
he  would  be  amply  repaid  by  the  nobility  of  the  act  he  had 
performed.  Evelyn  Nesbit  says  he  met  her  in  1901  and  called 
upon  her  frequently,  but  was  not  always  at  that  time  a  wel* 
come  visitor.  It  seems  her  mind  had  been  poisoned  by  the 
same  persons  who  afterward  poisoned  her  mind  against  him 
again.  He  says  of  her:  'When  I  first  knew  her  she  was  the 
most  active,  laughing,  strong  and  fair  child  I  ever  saw.' 

' '  That  was  the  time  when  she  was  the  support  of  the 
family,  going  about  in  the  daytime  from  studio  to  studio  and 
appearing  on  the  stage  at  night  and  pouring  into  the  lap  of 
her  mother  her  scant  wages. 

' '  And  what  was  the  nature  of  the  foul  wrong  done  to  this 
child? 

"What  was  the  fatal  deed  which  he  said  he  would  gladly 
have  purchased  with  his  life  if  it  could  be  undone? 

<*I  say  to  you,  th^se  letters  refer  to  no  other  transaction 


JURORS  MOVED  239 

than  the  story  she  related  on  the  witness  stand — the  story 
she  told  you  she  told  him  in  June,  1903.  The  letters  were 
private.  They  were  to  be  locked  up  in  Mr.  Longfellow's 
breast.  Then  ask  yourself  whether  it  is  possible  that  Mr. 
Thaw  was  telling  his  lawyer  in  September  a  falsehood  or  an 
invention  of  his  own  brain? 

''That  is  not  all.  You  remember  Thaw  returned  to  New 
York  in  November  and  shortly  thereafter  went  to  his  home 
in  Pittsburg  and  told  his  mother  the  selfsame  story  he  told 
his  lawyer  then  in  these  two  letters. 

"I  desire  to  give  you  the  mother's  testimony  and  ask  you 
whether  I  am  not  telling  you  exactly  what  occurred. 

"Not  only  that  but  I  invite  interruptions  if  you  desire 
to  set  me  right  if  I  omit  or  tell  anything  that  was  not  part  of 
the  testimony. 

"Now,  the  mother  whom  you  have  seen  on  the  stand  and 
of  whose  veracity  I  believe  not  even  the  prosecution  has  any 
doubt,  this  mother  says  that  after  he  arrived  home  she  found 
him  awake  at  night,  and  when  she  went  to  his  room  he  said 
it  was  because  of  a  wicked  man — perhaps  the  most  wicked 
man  in  New  York. 

"She  learned  before  Thanksgiving  that  this  was  said  about 
a  young  girl,  but  did  not  at  that  time  learn  her  name.  Her 
son  told  her  he  was  interested  in  that  girl.  This  she  learned 
one  night  when  the  mother  found  him  in  his  room  at  dawn. 
He  had  not  been  able  to  get  sleep  surcease  from  his  tortured 
brain. 

"She  said,  the  son  said,  that  this  girl  had  the  most  beau- 
tiful mind  he  had  ever  known,  that  she  had  been  neglected, 
that  if  she  had  a  chance  and  anyone  looking  after  her  she 
would  be  all  right.  And  then  you  remember,  gentlemen. 
Thanksgiving  came.  And  the  mother  and  the  son  went  to 
church  together,  and  there,  while  the  solemn  anthem  was 
peeling,  she  heard  tears  dropping  upon  the  paper  which  he 
was  holding  in  his  hand,  a  stifled  sob. 


240  TEE  GREAT  TEA^  CASE 

*'In  1903  he  intended  to  marry  her.  Writing  to  Long- 
fellow, he  says: 

' '  '  Miss  N.  and  I  may  be  married  after  Lady  Yarmouth 
comes.  We  could  have  been  married  without  a  row.  If  I 
die,  all  my  property  goes  to  my  wife.'  And,  writing  to  her, 
he  says:  'Mr.  and  Mrs.  George  Carnegie  should  be  your 
loving  brother  and  sister-in-law. '  Gentlemen,  no  man  of  his 
years,  of  his  tempermcnt,  ever  wooed  a  woman  in  a  manner 
more  respectable  than  Harry  Thaw  did  Evelyn  Nesbit. 

"There  is  nothing  to  show  that  everything  and  every  bit 
of  testimony  does  not  confirm  the  statement  of  Evelyn  that 
in  June,   1903,  he  proposed  honorably  to  make  her  his  wife. 

"In  corroboration  of  these  facts  told  by  Evelyn  Nesbit, 
that  she  told  this  story  of  Stanford  White,  that  he.  Thaw, 
asked  her  to  marry  him,  that  it  is  not  a  cunningly  devised 
tale  told  by  Harry  Thaw  for  his  own  purposes.  I  ask  you 
these  questions:  Does  a  man  who  loves  a  woman,  who  has 
lavished  upon  her  for  two  years  all  the  affections  of  his  heart, 
does  a  man  who  loves  a  woman  honorably  and  sought  to  make 
her  his  wife  and  besought  her  mother's  consent — does  a  man 
like  that  deliberately  invent  a  story  of  this  kind  to  defile  the 
object  of  his  adoration? 

* '  Until  you  can  take  from  this  case  the  fact  that  Harry- 
Thaw  loved  Evelyn  Nesbit,  if  any  man  says  to  you  that  he 
deliberately  invented  this  story  to  degrade  the  object  of  his 
affections — the  most  degrading  story  any  man  could  tell — it 
is  not  in  the  human  heart  but  to  revolt  from  the  allegation. 

"If  I  mistake  not,  I  have  established  to  your  satisfaction 
the  great,  simple  fact — that  this  story  about  Stanford  White 
is  not  an  invention  and  that  the  statement  that  Evelyn  Nesbit 
(lid  tell  the  story  to  Thaw  is  true.  , 

"As  against  this  assertion,  what  evidence  is  there  in 
tliis  case?  What  is  there  to  contradict  this  statement  of 
Evelyn  Nesbit,  the  statement  that  she  told  this  story  to  Thaw? 


JURORS  MOVED  241 

*' Nothing  except  the  testimony  of  Abe  Hummel.  I  will 
not  speak  of  that  unfortunate  man  in  any  harsher  term  thar 
the  exigencies  of  this  case  require.  But  it  is  a  melancholy 
sight  to  see  a  man  in  the  declining  years  of  his  life,  when 
soon  the  sun  must  set  for  him  forever,  and  he  will  appear  to 
give  that  account  of  his  life  that  we  are  all  called  upon  to 
give  after  death — I  say  it  is  a  melancholy  sight  to  see  a  man 
whose  pathway  has  been  wreathed  with  dishonest  acts, 
crowning  his  acts  with  perjury — resorting  to  perjury  in 
order  to  deprive  a  fellow  of  his  life. 

"Gentlemen,  is  this  censure  deemed  excessive?  Listen. 
Air.  Hummel  is  not  lacking  in  intelligence — certainly  is  not 
lacking  in  cunning. 

' '  Let  me  recall  to  your  mind  the  photograph  of  the  allqged 
affidavit.  You  remember  what  weight  the  prosecution  at- 
tached to  it  and  of  what  importance  they  considered  it.  Let 
me  call  your  attention  to  all  the  points  in  Hummel 's  testi- 
mony regarding  this. 

*  ^  Thaw 's  lawyer  then  tore  Hummel 's  evidence  to  bits, 
showing  that  in  one  place  he  swore  positively  he  sent  for 
the  photographer  and  in  another  he  swore  as  positively  that 
he  did  not.     Continuing  Delmas  said : 

"Which  of  these  stories  is  true?  They  both  come  from 
the  witness  sitting  in  that  chair.  They  both  have  the  sanc- 
tion of  his  oath — the  oath  of  a  man  already  convicted  for 
subornation  of  perjury  and  conspiracy.  Both  of  these  stories 
cannot  be  true.  Which  one  is  true?  One  of  these  two  stories 
is  a  deliberate  falsehood,  and  which  it  is  I  care  not.  They 
probably  are  both  false. 

"Abe  Hummell  testifies  that  this  thing,  miscalled  'affi- 
davit,' was  dictated  by  him  in  the  latter  part  of  October, 
190,3,  in  his  office,  to  a  stenographer  whose  name  he  does  not 
rernembor  and  even  whose  individuality  he  has  forgotten. 

"Listen:     If  Abe  Hummel  dictated  this  illegal  affidavit, 


242  THE  GREAT  THA^Y  CASE 

as  he  swears  he  did,  in  the  latter  part  of  October,  1903;  if 
this  is  his  work;  if  these  are  his  words,  this  his  dictation, 
then  he  committed  deliberate  perjury,  gentlemen,  and  the 
proof  of  this  perjury  was  in  the  hands  of  the  learned  inter- 
rogator. He  held  the  paper  before  him  while  the  witness 
was  in  the  chair  and  could  not  but  know  that  at  that  time 
the  witness  was  swearing  the  proof  of  his  perjury  was  lying 
before    him. 

''In  order  that  Abraham  H.  Hummel  could  testify  at 
all — before  his  lips  could  be  unsealed — it  was  necessary 
for  him  to  swear  he  was  not  acting  in  an  official  or  profes- 
sional capacity  for  Evelyn  Nesbit  when  he  dictated  this 
statement.  Hence  the  absolute  necessity  that  this  wretched 
old  man.  should  swear  that  he  was  not  acting  as  her  attor- 
ney. 

"Hence  he  says,  'I  was  not  acting  for  Evelyn  Nesbit. 
There  was  no  action  contemplated  by  her.  She  did  not 
consult  me  in  my  official  capacity.' 

"Hence  there  could  exist  no  professional  relations.  He 
said  so. 

"This  is  the  famous  paper  by  which  Abraham  Hummol 
hoped  to  help  the  District  Attorney  send  Harry  Thaw  to  the 
electric  chair.  Who  dictated  these  words,  which  lay  open 
before  the  District  Attorney  as  he  questioned  Hummel? 

'I  received  many  cablegrams  from  Mr.  Thaw,  which  I 
turned  over  to  my  counsel,  Abraham  Hummel.' 

"Who  dictated  these  words,  if  the  paper  was  dictated 
at  all?  Abraham  Hummel,  who  came  upon  the  stand  and 
swore  he  had  never  acted  as  her  attorney — Abraham  Hum- 
mel! 

"  'Howe  &  Hummel,  attorneys  for  plaintiff,'  are  the 
words  that  appear  on  the  indorsement  of  this  paper.  And 
who   was   the   plaintifff     Evelyn    Nesbit. 

"And    the   same   man   who   tells   you   no    action   was   cou- 


JURORS  MOVED  243 

templated  is  the  man  who  dictated  the  first  words  of  this 
afl&davit,  which  read,  'Evelyn  Nesbit,  plaintiff,  vs.  Harry 
K.  Thaw,  defendant.' 

''This  is  in  letters  as  legible  as  I  have  ever  looked  upon. 
Perjured  when  he  tells  you  he  was  not  counsel  for  Evelyn 
iSTesbit,  when  he  tells  you  no  legal  action  was  intended, 
when  he  dictated  this  affidavit. 

"You  are  called  upon  to  convict  her  of  perjury. 

"You  are  called  upon  to  do  so  upon  the  strength  of 
Hummel.  And  on  that  testimony  you  are  called  upon  to 
deprive   a   human  being  of   his  life. 

"How  did  this  paper  have  its  birth?  Miss  Simonton,  as 
I  have  told  you,  came  here  after  hearing  in  Paris  the  story 
you  have  all  heard.  Arriving  here,  she  went  to  Mr.  White 
in  order  to  get  confirmation  or  denial  of  that  story.  His 
body  turned  icy  cold  when  she  told  her  story  you  have 
heard. 

"He  knew  that  what  he  had  done  would  not  only  <lisgrace 
him,  but  would  send  him  to  prison. 

"She  was  told  that  Harry  Thaw  was  a  married  man  and 
that  she  should  be  protected  against  Harry  Thaw,  and  he 
took  her  to  Hummel 's  office.  What  was  White's  object  in 
taking  her  to  Hummel 's  office?  It  was  to  get  from  her  by 
some  monstrous  deception  her  statement  of  her  story  about 
herself  that  would  neutralize  their  efforts  should  they  ever 
attempt  to  bring  up  against  him  their  -story  of  his  outrage, 
of  his  acts." 

At  this  point  ]Mr.  Delma.s  had  spoken  two  and  one- 
half  hours,  and  court  was  adjourned,  with  another 
day  of  supreme  effort  ahead  for  the  brilliant  general 
in  command  of  the  defense. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

"The  Unwritten  Law"--The  Defense  Ends. 

DELMAS  IN  FINAL  BURST  OP  ELOQUENCE  CONCLUDES  STORY 
OF  E\^LYN  THAW^S  SAD  FATE — DECLARES  STANFORD 
WPIITE  A  MONSTER  "WHOM  THAW  WAS  JUSTIFIED  IN 
PUTTING  OUT  OF  THE  Wx\Y  — CRAZED  BY  WRONGS  DONE 
TO  EVELY^N— REMAREL\BLE  SERIES  OF  LETTERS  — DE- 
FENDANT PICTURED^  xVS  A  BENEFACTOR  TO  SOCIETY— ^^I 
NOW,  WITH  x\LL  SOLEMNITY'',  LEAVE  IN  Y^OUR  HANDS 
THE  FATE  OF  HARRY  K.  THAW. '  ^ 

In  a  final  burst  of  elpquence  seldom  equaled  before 
the  American  bar,  Attorney  Delmas  concluded  his  piti- 
ful tale  of  the  wrongs  of  Evelyn  Thaw  and  her  hus- 
band, and  concluded  dramatically : 

"I  now,  with  all  solemnity,  gentlemen  of  the  jury, 
leave  in  your  hands  the  fate  of  Harry  K.  Thaw." 

Mr.  Delmas  made  a  direct  appeal  to  the  unwritten 
law.     lie  said: 

"Let  me  call  the  'insanity'  of  Thaw  'Dementia 
Americana.'  It  is  the  species  of  insanity  that  makes 
every  American  man  believe  his  home  to  be  sacred ; 
that  is  the  species  of  insanity  which  makes  him  believe 
the  honor  of  his  daughter  is  sacred;  that  is  the  species 
of  insanity  which  makes  him  believe  the  honor  of  his 
wife  is  sacred;  that  is  the  species  of  insanity  which 
iMDkes  liim  believe  that  whosoever  invades  his  home, 

2U 


UNWRITTEN  LAW  245 

that  whosoever  stains  the  virtue  of  hLs  threshold,  has 
violated  the  highest  of  human  laws  and  must  appeal 
to  the  mercy  of  God,  if  mercy  there  be  for  him  any- 
where in  the  universe." 

The  point  of  Delmas'  whole  argument  was  that 
Stanford  White  deserved  his  fate ;  that  Harry  Thaw 
in  shooting  the  architect  had  acted  as  the  champion  of 
purity  and  goodness,  and  that  he  had  slain  a  foul 
monster  that  had  preyed  upon  the  virtue  of  women. 

The  closing  part  of  the  summing  up  by  Delmas  was 
as  follows : 

"I  will  relieve  the  long  suspense  which  has  been  occa- 
sioned by  your  labors  by  announcing  that  I  will  shortly 
leave  the  fate  of  this  defendant  in  your  hands.  Before 
entering  upon  the  remarks  which  I  propose  making  it  may 
be  useful  to  cast  a  rapid  glance  over  what  I  have  already 
said,  so  that  you  may  connect  what  I  shall  have  to  say 
with  what  I  have  already  said. 

"I  have  endeavored  to  lay  before  the  ej'es  of  the  jury 
the  picture  of  the  fate  of  these  two  young  people.  I  had 
tried  to  show  the  unfortunate  occurrence  which  befell  her 
when  she  narrated  to  him  in  the  summer  of  1903  her  awful 
story  of  what  had  happened.  I  have  shown,  or  at  least 
have  endeavored  to  convince  you,  first,  that  the  facts  which 
she  swears  she  then  related  were  true  and,  secondly,  that 
it  was  true  that  she  did  relate  them  to  the  defendant  at 
that  time." 

Here  Mr.  Delmas  endeavored  to  prove  these  facts. 

"Gentlemen,  I  shall  prove  to  you  from  a  number  of 
sources,  and  first,  without  adding  any  words  of  my  own, 
in  the  very  language  in  which  it  was  told  by  Evelyn  when 
she  was  testifying  before  you.  , 


246  TEE  GEE  AT  THA^Y  CASE 

"She  says,  after  narrating  what  took  place  in  Paris  in 
June,  1903:  ^The  effect  of  this  story  on  Mr.  Thaw  was 
terrible.  To  think  of  me — I  was  so  young — and  to  think, 
of  this  big,  great  yellow  brute.  It  must  have  been  fright- 
ful. He  could  not  think  of  it.  He  would  walk  up  and 
down  the  room  exclaiming,  "Oh,  God;  oh,  God,"  and 
kept  sobbing,  not  like  an  ordinary  sob,  but  a  terrible  sob. 
He  kept  saying,  "Go  on,  tell  me  the  whole  story."  He 
said  it  was  not  my  fault — that  I  was  simply  a  poor  unfor- 
tunate little  girl;  that  he  didn't  think  any  the  less  of  me 
on  account  of  it,  and  he  said  that  no  matter  what  hap- 
pened he  would  always  be  my  friend.  He  renewed  his  pro- 
posal of  marriage  two  months  after.  He  said  that  I  was 
not  to  blame — that  it  was  not  my  fault. 

"  *I  told  him  that  if  I  did  marry  him  the  friends  of 
Stanford  White  would  always  laugh  at  him — that  they 
knew  about  it  and  would  be  able  to  sneer  at  him  after  our 
marriage;  that  it  would  not  be  right  for  us  to  get  married; 
that  it  would  not  be  a  good  thing  because  of  his  family; 
it  would-  get  him  into  trouble  in  his  social  relations.  He 
kept  saying  that  he  could  never  care  for  or  love  anybody 
else.  He  said  he  never  could  marry  another  woman  and 
that  he  wanted  to  make  me  his  honorable  wife.  He  said  I 
was  an  unfortunate  person  and  he  thought  just  as  much 
of  me. 

"  'He  kept  pressing  me  to  become  his  wife,  but  T  said 
T  could  go  on  the  stage.  T  said  that  if  he  ever  met  some 
one  he  wanted  to  marry  he  would  be  perfectly  free  to 
do  so. 

"  'I  loved  him  so  dearly,  but  during  the  whole  period 
r  was  refusing  his  offers  of  marriage  because  I  loved  him. 
And  T  also  respected  him.' 

"  'Sublime  renunciation,'  says  the  sneering  district 
attorney.  'Sublime  refusal  on  her  part  to  accept  the  hand 
of  a  wealthy  man  when  he  offered  her  an  honorable  union.' 


V  my  BITTEN  LAW  247 

''Incredible,  he  would  lead  you  to  believe. 

"  'Impossible!'  the  district  attorney  says,  and  in  the 
same  breath  intimates  that  it  is  a  falsehood  from  begin- 
ning to  end. 

"I  shall  prove  to  you  by  evidence  that  will  convince 
you  beyond  every  doubt  that  this  renunciation  by  Evelyn 
was  sincere.  But,  thank  God,  the  great  Creator  has  placed 
in  the  breast  of  gentler  woman  the  noble  sentiment  and 
renunciation  for  the  consolation  of  the  home  and  of  the 
world. 

"But  I  shall  prove  to  you  that  it  is  true.  I  shall  prove 
to  you  beyond  the  rJightest  doubt  that  she  did  refuse  him, 
and  refused  him  for  that  reason  alone. 

"Man,  it  may  be,  has  not  that  great  power  of  renun- 
ciation, but  in  the  sentler  breast  of  woman  do  we  find  that 
great  gift  of  God,  and  in  the  breast  of  this  little  girl  existed 
this  great  strength  that  enabled  her  to  put  aside  her  one 
love  when  she  knew  it  was  for  the  good  of  the  one  she 
loved. 

"Sublime  renunciation!  Ah,  it  indeed  is.  Do  you  re- 
member the  letters  he  wrote  three  months  after  this  sub- 
lime renunciation?  He  says  in  a  letter  written  in  Septem- 
ber, 1903:  'Tnree  months  ago  I  asked  her  point-blank. 
She  thought,  but  said  she  would  not;  that  it  would  shut 
me  out,'  etc. 

"The  genuineness  of  this  letter  is  not  disputed;  that  it 
was  written  to  Mr.  Longfellow  is  not  denied;  that  Mr. 
Longfellow  was  the  trusted  friend  and  adviser  of  Harry 
Thaw  ia  admitted.  Three  months  before  September,  1903, 
when  this  was  written,  was  in  the  early  summer  of  1903. 
Is  not  that  true?  Is  it  not  true  that  she  had  refused  him? 
In  this  letter  he  says  she  thought  she  did  not  want  the 
man  she  loved  to  become  an  object  of  scorn. 


248      TEE  GREAT  THA^Y  CASE 

''She  looked  up  to  the  man  she  loved  and  she  did  not 
want  the  man  she  loved  to  be  pointed  at  with  the  finger  of 
scorn. 

"In  her  little  heart  she  said,  'Oh,  Harry,  I  love  you.  I 
love  you  so  much  that  I  will  not  drag  you  down.  I  want 
to  leave  you  free^  and  the  moment  you  say  so  I  shall  return 
to  my  own  sad  way.  You  shall  be  free  and  happy  and  I 
will  go  down  until  I,  like  many  others,  have  disappeared 
from  the  world.' 

"The  sneer,  then,  is  unjustified.  The  sublime  renuncia- 
tion did  take  place,  although  we  men  may  not  rise  above 
our  sordid  occupations  to  realize  it.  Do  you  remember 
how  his  mother  saw  him  holding  his  vigil  in  his  room; 
heard  him  sob  and  moan,  and  how  he  told  her  about  the 
awful  wrongs  done  to  a  little  girl  whom  he  loved? 

"And  he  told  her  he  desired  to  protect  the  child  from 
the  vile  wrong  that  had  been  done  her;  that  he  had  pro- 
posed marriage,  and  that  she — I  quote  the  very  words  of 
the  mother — that  she  had  refused  because  she  would  not 
drag  him  down. 

"Has  this  gray-haired  and  venerable  mother  in  Israel 
come  here  to  perjure  herself,  or  did  he  deceive  her  when 
he  told  her  that  he  wanted  to  extend  his  protecting  arm 
over  the  girl  whom  the  other  had  betrayed;  that  she,  the 
poor  little  girl  who  was  earning  her  living  by  the  talents 
God  had  given  her — she  refused  the  man,  not  because  she 
did  not  love  him,  but  because  she  thought  it  would  not 
be  fitting  to  wed  the  man  she  so  dearly  loved. 

"Sublime,  indeed,  was  the  renunciation  of  this  girl, 
unless  the  mother  of  Harry  Thaw  has  not  told  the  truth 
upon  the  stand.  I  return  to  her  story  as  told  in  her  own 
words.  She  says:  'He  talked  altogether  too  much  of  this 
thing.  He  did  not  sleep  nights.  He  cried  too  much  about 
it.     It  was  not  crying,  but  terrible  sobbing.     He  would  sit 


UNWRITTEN  LAW        '  249 

for  hours  without  speaking  or  moving,  and  it  was  terrible, 
terrible.  He  got  worse  about  it.  He  would  sit  for  hours 
in  a  chair,  just  biting  his  nails.  And  then,  in  the  midst 
of  it,  he  would  suddenly  ask  me  about  Stanford  White.  It 
seemed  to  be  something  that  was  ever  present.' 

''This,  gentlemen,  was  the  condition  of  Harry  Thaw 
when,  in  1903,  he  parted  from  Evelyn  Nesbit  and  sent  her 
back  ahead  of  him  to  New  York.  You  have  the  first  faint 
dawn  of  that  mental  condition  which  manifested  itself 
three  years  after.  The  tower  in  which  reason  held  its  seat 
did  not  topple  over,  but  its  foundations'  were  already  be- 
ginning to  be  undermined. 

''The  storm  had  not  burst  forth,  but  the  dark  clouds  were 
gathering  from  the  four  quarters  of  the  horizon,  from 
which  lightning  and  thunder  were  three  years  afterwards 
to  burst  forth. 

"She  says  that  he  called  upon  her  as  soon  as  he  arrived 
in  New  York — the  middle  of  November.  She  had  got  to 
this  city  in  the  latter  part  of  October.  In  the  meantime 
such  things  had  happened  here  that  when  the  man  whom 
she  loved  and  whose  hand  she  had  refused  called  ujion  her 
she  declined  to  see  him  alone,  and  she  says:  'I  saw  him 
at  the  Navarre.  I  would  not  see  him  alone.  He  came  into 
the  room  and  sat  beside  me  and  said:  "What  is  the  matter 
with  you?"  and  T  said:  "I  don't  care  to  speak  to  you  be- 
cause I  have  heard  certain  things  about  you."  He  said  ho 
did  not  understand,  and  wanted  me  to  tell  him. 

"  'I  told  him  that  I  had  heard  terrible  stories.  He 
said,  "Poor  Evelyn!  They  have  deceived  you!"  I  told 
him  that  Mr.  White  had  taken  me  to  Abraham  Hummel 's 
office  and  that  they  had  showed  me  papers  which  they  said 
were  filed  in  a  suit  by  a  young  woman  against  him.  He 
said,  "Poor  little  girl!  You  can  believe  them  if  you  wish." 
The    interview    lasted    ten   minutes.      I   persisted    I    did   not 


250  THE  GEE  AT  THAW  CASE    ■ 

■want  to  have  anything  to  do  with  him.  At  the  parting  he 
kissed  my  hand  and  said  no  matter  what  happened  he 
would  always  love  me  and  I  would  be  an  angel  to  him.' 

''Gentlemen,  I  ask  you  to  picture  yourself  in  the  state 
of  mind  Harry  Thaw  was  in  when  he  received  such  a  greet- 
ing from  the  woman  he  loved — the  one  he  had  parted  from 
but  a  few  weeks  ago;  the  one  he  had  sworn  to  devote  his 
whole  life  to.  I  ask  you  to  imagine  what  his  condition  of 
mind  was  when  he  returned  to  New  York  and  found  that 
she  had  had  her  mind  so  poisoned  against  him  again  by  the 
man  who  had  been  the  cause  of  all  her  misfortune. 

"She  would  allow  White  to  fill  her  mind  with  these 
•terrors  of  Harry  Thaw  to  such  an  extent  that  she  refused 
to  see  Harry  Thaw  alone.  And  what  must  have  been  the 
condition  of  mind  of  that  poor  man  when  he  exclaimed, 
'Oh,  poor,  deluded  Evelyn!'  and  stooped  and  kissed  her 
and  then  parted,  as  she  believed,  forever  from  her. 

"Gentlemen,  what  was  the  condition  of  his  mind  is 
pictured  to  your  eyes  by  documents  of  immeasurable  worth, 
telling  the  story  of  this  epoch  in  Harry  Thaw's  life. 

"The  series  of  letters  that  voiced  the  wail  that  came 
from  his  suffering  soul  is  unparalled  in  history  from  the 
time   of  the   Greeks  to  the  present   day. 

"He  wrote  to  her  the  day  after  he  had  kissed  her  hand 
and  i)arted  from  her — she  thought  for  all  time — he  wrote: 
'Yesterday  I  saw  you — you  believed  everything  false  people 
told  you.  Poor  little  Evelyn!  You  have  fallen  back  into 
the  hands  of  the  man  who  poisoned  your  life — who  poisoned 
your  mind.  I  have  no  reproaches  to  heap  on  your  head, 
for  T  know  you  are  honest. 

"'I  must  fight  this  battle  alone,'  his  letter  went  on. 
'T  should  liave  In^t  every  cent  in  the  world  three  weeks 
ago  that  no  hypnotism  in  the  world  could  have  made  you 
turn  on  me.' 


UXWRITTEX  LAW  251 

''If  this  man  (Hummel)  who  sat  upon  that  chair  and 
perjured  himself  in  your  presence — had  he  kept  away  with 
his  smooth  tongue  and  professional  tricks  and  devices,  poor 
little  Evelyn  Thaw  would  not  have  turned  away  from  her 
the  man  who  loved  her  and  who  was  ready  to  sacrifice  his 
life  for  her. 

' '  She  would  not  have  broken  the  vow  which  she  pledged. 
She  would  have  kept  the  purest  thing  from  the  pollution 
of  those  double-minded,  lying,  deceitful,  treacherous  per- 
sons. 

"  *I  am  changed,  but  not  in  truth  or  faithfulness.  Alone 
I  cannot  settle  down.  I  am  not  responsible  now,  so  I  am 
frivolous  and  not  at  all  as  I  was  before.  1  can  do  no  more 
than  make  the  best  of  it,  which  was  far  from  bad  except 
for  regrets — every  loss,  every  illness,  everj'  opportunity 
missed — all  these  together  are  but  as  the  raging  sea  of 
water  to  a  battling  ship.  Everything  is  trivial  to  me  now.' 
"Pages  neither  of  poetry  nor  oratory  contain  a  more 
simple  story  of  anguish  than  the  one  of  this  young  man, 
seeing  the  object  of  his  affections  won  from  him  by  this 
man   who  had  wrecked   her  life. 

"All  was  lost  to  him  and  the  world  appeared  to  him 
flat.  He  had  nothing  to  live  for — all  the  ambitions  of  his 
life  were  gone  and  whatever  could  happen  was  but  as  a 
glass  of  water  in  the  sea  in  which  a  ship  was  battling.  He 
loft  New  York  in  November  for  his  mother's  home  in  Pitts- 
burg in  this  condition. 

"Up  to  that  time  Harry  Thaw  had  been  a  man  of  cheer- 
ful and  sanguine  temperament.  His  mother  saw  a  change 
had  come  over  her  son  the  moment  he  crossed  the  door. 
His  manner  was  entirely  different.  He  had  an  absent- 
minded  look,  as  if  he  had  lost  everything, 

"She  told  how  she  then  in  the  dark  of  night  had  found 
him  sitting  up  on  his  bed  fullj'-  dressed — how  she  questioned 


252  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

him.  'It's  no  nse/  he  said,  'I  cannot  sleep.'  The  mother 
was  allowed  to  peep  into  the  heart  of  the  suffering  son  by 
the  story  she  brought  ont,  little  by  little. 

''But  even  then  he  would  not  tell  the  girl's  name,  and 
then  you  remember  the  scene  in  the  church  and  while  the 
organ  pealed;  how  the  sob  broke  from  his  throat  and  the 
tears  gushed  from  his  eyes,  and  how  when  his  mother  asked 
him  why  he  had  sobbed  he  answered,  'But  for  him  she 
might  have  been  with  us  today.' 

"That  was  the  condition  of  his  mind;  that  one  thing 
was  ever  in  his  mind. 

"He  could  not,  he  would  not  forget — great,  courageous, 
indomitable  man,  who  believes  he  has  a  mission  to  fulfill, 
to  make  one  m.ore  effort  to  rescue  her  from  the  hands  of 
vice  into  which  Stanford  White  had  lured  her.  He  came 
back  to  New  York  and  met  her  in  a  drug  store,  where  the 
artificial  means  were  found  to  supply  the  beauty  she  pos- 
sessed, and  he  said:  'Oh,  these  things  are  not  for  you.' 
And  you  remember  how,  afterward,  they  met  as  mere 
acquaintances  in  the  street  and  passed  the  time  of  day. 

"Here  again  no  words  of  mine  could  sui)pl3''  the  picture 
that  is  furnished  by  the  words  of  the  wife  herself  as  they 
fell  from  her  lips  on  the  stand.  She  says  that  when  they 
met  at  the  Cafe  Beaux  Arts:  'I  said  I  was  going  to  a  play, 
and  Mr.  Thaw  said  I  looked  badly  and  wished  I  would  not 
go  to  the  play.  He  would  pay  me  my  salary  I  would  lose — 
that  ho  would  send  it  through  a  third  party.  He  begged 
me  merely  for  the  sake  of  my  health  not  to  go  to  the 
theater. 

"  'But  I  said  that  I  would  go;  that  I  had  no  other 
means  of  livelihood.'  You  remember  they  met  a  couple 
of  days  afterward  and  he  asked  her  to  tell  him  of  the  stories 
that  had  been  told  about  him.  'I  told  him  then,'  she  said, 
'all  they  had  said  about  him  and  that  he  was  addicted  to 


UNWRITTEX  LAW  253 

morphine  and  liad  many  other  vices,  and  he  said  he  could 
easily  understand  that  they  had  made  a  fool  of  me.  He 
urged   investigation.' 

*'She  could  find  nothing  in  the  stories.  'I  never  lie/ 
Thaw  told  her.  'You  never  told  me  a  lie  in  your  life,'  she 
said.  And  while  she  was  investigating  these  stories  spread 
by  Abraham  Hummel  for  the  protection  of  Stanford  White, 
he  told  her  all  these  things  had  been  disseminated  by  Stan- 
ford White  and  his  friend. 

''When  she  discovered  that  these  awful  stories  were 
untrue — learned  that  they  had  been  disseminated  by  Stan- 
ford White  and  Abe  Hummel  for  the  purpose  of  separating 
her  from  the  man  who  loved  her  and  whom  she  loved — 
hope  began  once  more  to  dawn  upon  him. 

"The  hour  of  reconciliation  was  at  hand.  The  barriers 
which  had  been  set  up  between  them  were  one  by  one  fall- 
ing to  ruin  and  the  two  persons  whom  God  and  nature  had 
intended  to  be  united  were  drawing  nearer  to  each  other. 

"That  night  in  December,  1903 — that  night  might  have 
been,  gentlemen,  the  beginning  of  another  tragic  chapter 
in  the  life  of  this  poor  child — the  night  when  Stanford 
White  in  the  lofty  room  in  the  tower  where  he  had  spread 
a  banquet  in  celebration  of  the  loirthday  of  his  child  vic- 
tim— the  night  in  which  he  was  to  lure  her  once  again  if 
possible,  and  bring  her  under  his  influence — the  night  in 
which,  amid  the  glare  of  the  lights  and  the  splendor  of  the 
treasures  he  had  planned  to  renew  his  power  over  the  child 
victim. 

"And  the  little  girl,  who  had  resisted  the  pleadings  of 
rescuing  her  came  to  her  and  snatched  her  from  the  clutches 
of  Stanford  White — snatched  her  from  the  snares  set  for 
her — from  the  man  whose  very  existence  had  been  a  menace 
to  her  and  the  curse  of  his  whole  life. 

"He  folded  her  in  his  arms;    he  snatched  her  away  from 


254  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

the  old  man.  And  that  night  began  another  series  of 
events.  It  was  on  that  night  that  Stanford  White,  baffled, 
his  plans  disconcerted,  went  about  that  theater  in  Madison 
Square  hunting  for  his  victim,  and,  finding  her  not,  pistol 
in  hand  and  with  impotent  rage  in  his  heart,  threatened  to 
shoot  the  man  who  had  baffled  his  schemes. 

^'And  that  night  Harry  Thaw,  as  he  walked  the  streets 
of  New  York,  found  that  his  footsteps  were  being  dogged 
by  hired  malefactors  in  the  pay  of  Stanford  White,  and  he 
learned  in  a  few  days  of  the  threat  of  Stanford  White  and 
his  hirlings.  From  that  moment  the  dread  of  his  life  being 
taken  away  by  this  man  added  a  grim  specter  to  the  one 
that  already  had  been  haunting  him. 

''And  he  from  that  time,  as  she  relates  to  you,  began 
to  think  himself  persecuted  by  Stanford  White.  The  scur- 
rilous stories  circulated  in  newspa])ers  and  elsewhere  he 
attributed  to  him.  He  exjjressed  apprehension  of  personal 
violence  and  impressed  upon  her  mind  that  if  he  died  she 
Avas  to  have  his  death  investigated  and  to  spare  no  pains. 

''He  told  her  he  would  probably  be  set  upon  in  New 
York  by  some  one  in  the  employ  of  Stanford  White.  He 
said  the  Monk  Eastman  gang  had  been  hired  to  kill  him 
iind  the  fear  of  death  constantly  haunted  him. 

"Consider  in  this  connection,  consider  the  strange 
clause  in  his  Will— if  you  will  not  take  it  from  Evelyn — the 
strange  clause  ai)propriating  the  sum  of  $;")(),()00  to  be  de- 
voted to  the  investigation  into  his  death,  should  it  occur. 

"In  1904,  in  the  latter  part  of  the  year,  or  the  begin- 
ning of  1905,  a  second  operation  was  performed  on  Kvelyii. 
And  when  she  was  convalescent  the  man  who  for  two  yenrs 
had  loved  her,  the  man  who  had  tohl  her  sad  story  to  his 
mother  in  1903,  w^ho  liad  been  refused  by  her  becans(»  slio 
thonglit  their  union  would  interfere  with  his  family  nda- 
tious — that  man,  I  say,  such  was  the  constancy  and   fervor 


UNWRITTEN  LAW  255 

of  his  love,  persuaded  his  mother  to  come  to  the  little  girl 
whose  sad  story  she  knew  and  whom  in  her  heart  she  could 
not  but  revere. 

''And  she  came  to  New  York — she,  embodiment  of  all 
til  at  a  good  wife  and  mother  means — she  came  and  saw  the 
little  girl  and  assured  her  that  she  would  be  welcome  to 
her  home;  that  no  allusion  would  ever  be  made  to  her  sad 
story. 

"And  the  little  girl,  who  had  resisted  the  pleadings  of 
the  man  who  had  loved  her  and  because  she  loved  him, 
could  not  resist  the  j)lea(lings  of  the  mother,  and  on  April 
4,  1905,  they  were  united  at  the  altar,  when  he  in  return 
for  her  love  pledged  to  her  before  Almighty  God  that  he 
would  protect  her.     And  these  two  were  then  made  one. 

' '  And  after  a  trip  westward  they  returned  to  the  shades 
of  Lyndhurst,  the  old  family  hom(!ste-"^  They  wore  ha])py 
in  each  other's  love,  happy  in  each  other's  confidence,  for- 
getting the  past. 

**Biit  social  or  business  exigencies  would  not  ]irevent 
them  from  coming  to  New  York,  and  one  day  while  riding 
down  one  of  your  streets  there  appeared  the  form  of  the 
man  who  had  been  the  cause  of  so  much  anguish,  and  he, 
though  she  was  the  wife  of  another  man,  stared  at  her, 
and  had  the  audacity  to  call  her  by  her  first  name. 

''She  went  back  to  the  hotel  where  her  husband  was, 
and  told  him  what  had  ha])pened.  And  he,  in  his  anger, 
cxclnimed:  'The  dirty  blackguard  had  no  right  to  speak  to 
you — no  right  to  speak  your  name.'  And  he  extracted 
from  her  the  promise  that  no  matter  what  happened  slio 
would  tell  him   all. 

"  'He  made  me,'  she  says,  'promise  that  if  I  ever  saw 
Stanford  WHiite  T  was  to  come  home  and  tell  him  of  it.' 

"They  next  met  in  Now  York  when  she  was  going  to  a 
physician.      Their    hansoms    crossed    at    Thirty-fourth    street. 


256  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

He  stared  at  her,  pulled  at  his  mustache,  and  stared  and 
stared.  She  did  not  speak  to  him,  but  looked  away  and 
turned  into  Twenty-second  street. 

*'He  also  turned,  and  as  she  ran  up  the  stairs  of  her 
doctor's  he  followed  her.  She  became  frightened,  and  ran 
down  the  steps  and  jumped  into  a  hansom  and  drove  to 
the  Lorraine,  where  she  told  her  husband. 

*'  'He  got  excited,'  she  said,  'and  bit  his  nails.'  In 
May,  1906,  not  long  before  the  hour  which  was  to  be  Stan- 
ford White's  last  on  earth,  this  is  the  story  that  she  related 
to  her  husband.  She  told  him  that  Miss  Mae  MacKenzie 
had  told  her  that  Stanford  White  had  been  to  the  hospital 
to  see  her.  That  she,  Mae  MacKenzie,  had  said  to  him, 
*  Isn  't  it  nice  the  way  Harry  and  Evelyn  really  do  care  for 
each  other?'  and  that  she  said  that  she  had  found  it  out, 
and  that  Stanford  White  said:  'Pooh!  I  don't  believe  it.' 
And  ^riss  MacKenzie  had  replied:  'Oh,  yes;  it  is  true. 
I  know  it  myself,  and  I  think  it  is  so  nice,'  and  Stanford 
White  had  remarked:  'Well,  it  will  not  last  long.  I  will 
got  her  back,'     All  tliis  she  related  to  her  husband. 

"Then,  when  she  told  her  husband  what  Mae  Mac- 
Kenzie had  told  her,  he  became  wild,  and  began  to  gnaw 
his  finger  nails.  Did  he  not  have  cause  to  get  wild,  to  lose 
that  reason  which  in  a  civilized  community  one  is  sup- 
posed to  stifle? 

"  'I  stole  her  once  from  her  mother,  I  will  steal  her 
now  from  her  husband,'  Stanford  White  said.  But  between 
him  and  the  consummation  of  that  act  there  remained  the 
strong  arm  of  tiiat  young  man  to  protect  her  from  his 
snares. 

"You  remember  how  at  Daly's  Theater  Harry  Thaw 
and  his  wife  saw  Stanford  WHiite  in  a  box  opposite,  and 
how.  when  he  saw  him,  lie  became  enraged. 

"When  he   looked   into   those    eyes,   into   which   so   many 


UNWRITTEN  LAW  257 

a  young  girl  had  looked  before  she  -went  down  to  her  ruin, 
his  eyes  grew  wild  and  he  just  sat  there  and  stared  and 
stared  at  the  object  of  his  thoughts.  She  says,  describing 
another  meeting:  'At  another  time,  when  Harry  and  I 
were  passing  Herald  Square  in  a  hansom,  we  saw  Stanford 
White  on  the  street.  Mr.  Thaw  grew  white  and  his  eyes 
glared.  He  talked  so  fast  that  I  could  not  understand  him. 
He  carried  on  in  this  way  for  about  fifteen  minutes.  I 
believe  Harry  had  a  fit  then  and  there.  He  sljook  violently. 
He  moaned  and  clenched  and  unclenched  his  hands,  and 
.that  was  the  way  he  acted  when  he  saw  Stanford  White. 

"  'One  Sunday,*  said  Evelyn,  'he  was  sitting  in  a  chair 
in  my  room  and  suddenly  he  began  to  sob  and  cry  without 
any  warning  whatever,  apparently  gazing  upon  vacancy. ' 

"His  mind  was  always  on  this  man.  He  cried  until  at 
last  his  own  wife  could  not  but  believe  this  subject — the 
thought  of  Stanford  White — had  preyed  so  on  his  mind  that 
he  had  become  insane. 

"The  man  who  had  brooded  over  those  pictures  of  hor- 
ror for  three  years — this  man  would  have  been  more  than 
human  if  he  could  have  preserved  a  calmness  of  reason. 
Now,  gentlemen,  place  yourselves  in  the  position  of  this 
defendant. 

"Recall  the  time,  those  of  you  who  have  wives,  recall 
the  time  that  you  led  the  one  you  loved  to  the  altar,  and  if 
possible  do  this  defendant  justice.  You  remember  when 
the  little  lady  tells  you  that  her  husband  on  this  subject 
had  lost  his  mind — do  you  remember  in  this  connection  the 
spontaneous  exclamation  of  the  friend  who,  on  hearing  the 
shctg  fired  on  the  Madison  Square  Roof-garden,  made  the 
exclamation:     'This  is  the  act  of  an  insane  man.' 

"Oentlemen,  nothing  row  remains  for  me  to  do  but  to 
call  your  attention  to  the  n-ents  of  the  night  of  the  tragedy. 
With  a  view  simply  of  el  icidating  the  great  point,  fix  your 


258  TEE  GREAT  THA^V  CASE 

attention  on  this  point — that  is,  the  condition  of  mind  of 
the  defendant  on  that  fateful  night — you  recall  tliat  Mr. 
Thaw,  his  wife  and  two  friends  were  seated  at  dinner  at 
the  (,'ufe  Martin,  a  place  of  public  entertainment  in  this 
city.  The  time  was  summer,  the  evening  doubtless  was  sul- 
try. Tables  had  been  set  upon  the  balcony,  the  veranda  on 
tho  outside  for  the  accommodation  of  those  who  desired  a 
cooler  spot. 

*  *  Now,  while  this  party  of  four  were  seated  at  the 
table,  Stanford  White,  by  accident  or  design,  came  into 
the  room  in  which  they  were  seated.  He  came  in  through 
such  an  entrance  that  Harry  Thaw  himself  could  not  see 
him.  After  White  went  out  on  the  veranda  on  the  Fifth 
avenue  side  and  remained  there  a  considerable  time. 

"The  wife,  seeing  him,  forbore  at  the  time  to  call  her 
husband's  attention  to  him,  and  only  when  he  was  gone  did 
she   call   his   attention    on  paper.      She  wrote   upon  it,  ^Thc 

B '    (meaning   blackguard)    'was    there,   but   has   gone 

out  again.' 

"As  denoting  the  condition  of  mind  of  the  defendant 
at  that  time,  he  turned  to  his  wife  and  said  to  her,  *Are 
you  all  right?'  and  her  answer  that  she  was  mastered  every 
emotion  he  had  in  that  public  place  and  the  incident  had 
no  further  consequence.  Now,  you  will  remember  that  dur- 
ing the  afternoon  Thaw  had  procured  four  tickets  for  the 
jxM-formance  that  was  to  take  place  that  night  at  the  gar- 
den. He  took  with  him  his  party  and  on  the  way  took 
along  another  friend  to  whom  he  gave  his  own  seat.  Ho 
went  about  with  his  busy,  nervous  activity  which  charac- 
terizes him  until  he  found  a  seat  beside  the  witness  Smith. 
"He  sat  by  Mr.  Smith  for  half  an  hour  engaging  in 
such  idle  conversation  as  so-called  men  of  the  world  indulge 
in — men  whose  minds  are  not  seriously  engaged  in  the 
serious  problems  of   life.  t 


UN  WRIT  TEX  LA^Y  259 

''When  Thaw  saw  White  he  walked  quietly  and  slowly 
down  the  aisle  until  he  faced  W^hite  and  then  fired  three 
shots, 

''He  then  slowly  and  deliberately  turned  away — and  I 
wish  to  call  your  attention  especially  to  this  circumstance, 
aparently  slight,  but  to  my  mind  of  the  utmost  importance, 
and  testified  to  by  the  defense.  Mr.  Meyer  Cohen,  one 
of  the  witnesses,  said  that  as  soon  as  he  heard  the  shots  he 
looked  and  saw  Thaw  standing  facing*  the  audience  with 
his  arms  spread  out  in  the  form  of  a  cross,  a  circumstance 
which  has  not  been  dwelt  upon  by  any  of  the  learned 
experts  for  the  State. 

"Mr.  Thaw  stood  as  a  priest  might  have  stood  after 
some  ceremony  of  sacrificial  offering,  saying,  'All  is  over,' 
{ind  dismissing  the  congregation.  He  turned  his  pistol 
barrel  down  to  indicate  to  the  audience  that  there  was  no 
danger  to  them. 

"He  then  walked  slowly  to  where  his  wife  stood,  and 
when  she  said,  'Oh,  Harry,  what  have  you  done?'  he  re- 
])lied:  'It  is  all  right,  dearie,  I  have  probably  saved  your 
life.'  As  he  said  this  he  stooped  and  kissed  her.  When 
Ik;  was  disarmed  he  said,  'He  has  ruined  my  wife.'  When 
the  policeman  came  he  said:     'He  has  ruined  my  wife.' 

"1  have  dwelt  upon  these  acts  and  declarations  of  Mr. 
Thaw  at  that  time  to  call  your  attention  to  the  fact  that 
the  safety  of  his  wife  was  menaced  by  the  man  who  had 
followed  her  to  the  garden,  the  same  man  who  had  followed 
her  to  Dr.  Delavan,  the  same  man  who  had  said  to  Mae 
MacKenzie  he  would  get  this  young  wife  away  from  Thaw. 

"What  condition  of  mind  must  Harry  K.  Thaw  have 
b(M^n  in  when  walking  down  the  aisle  he  turned  and  sud- 
denly saw  th(!  form — the  hideous  form — of  the  man  who 
h;i(l  caused  so  much  unhappiness. 

"If    you   have   been   near    death   you   know   that   at    such 


2G0  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

a  time  the  rnind  travels  with  the  rapidity  of  lightning. 
The  mind  goes  back  over  the  past  like  lightning.  Then 
Thaw,  as  he  looked  upon  the  hideous  form  of  this  man,  saw 
the  whole  panorama  of  White's  life.  He  saw  him  making 
his  way  into  the  family  where  poverty  dwelt;  saw  him 
laying  bare  his  plans  to  ingratiate  himself;  saw  him  giving 
the  mother  money  to  absent  herself  from  the  city  that  he 
might  perpetrate  the  deed  of  shame  he  had  planned;  saw 
him  inflaming  her  youthful  imagination;  plying  her  with 
wine;  saw  her  mind  wandering  under  the  fatal  drug;  saw 
her  losing  consciousness;  saw  her  in  her  shame;  saw  him 
next  day  kissing  the  hem  of  her  dress;  heard  his  thousand 
protestations  of  love;  heard  her  refusing,  and  saw  that 
chamber  in  Paris  where  she  told  him  the  story  of  her 
w^rongs;  heard  again  his  oft  proposals  to  her;  he  saw  that 
terrible  night  when  she  had  told  him  her  story;  he  saw 
himself  as  he  walked  the  floor  and  cried,  'Oh,  God!  Oh, 
God!' 

''He  saw  her  return  to  New  York;  he  saw  her  meet 
this  man  who  had  wronged  her;  he  saw  her  about  to  fall 
into  this  villain's  hands,  and  he  saw  himself  rescue  her 
from  this  man.  He  saw  himself  again  at  the  altar  marry- 
ing her. 

"He  saw  her  when  her  mind  was  poisoned  against  him 
by  the  same  man  who  had  ruined  her;  he  saw  her  rescued 
from  the  man;  he  went  over  the  happy  months  he  had 
lived  with  her  in  his  mother's  house;  he  saw  this  monster 
and  he  heard  his  words,'  'I  will  get  her  back,'  and  he  know 
not,  ho  reasoned  not,  he  struck  as  does  the  tigress  to  ])r()- 
tect  her  home — struck  for  the  purity  of  American  homos — 
struck  for  the  purity  of  American  maidens — struck  for  t!:«' 
purity  of  American  wives.  He  struck,  and  who  shall  s;iy 
he  was  not  right? 

"Hg    had    appealed    to    the    Pinkcrtous,    to    the    district 


UNWRITTEN  LAW  261 

attorney,  and  that  night  he  appealed  to  God,  and  God  that 
night  answered  that  cry — the  cry  of  the  fatherless  child. 
And  God  then  redeemed  the  promise  He  had  made  thou- 
sands of  years  ago  when  He  said  He  would  hear  the  cries 
of  the  afflicted  and  that  He  would  make  the  wives  of  the 
oppressors  widows  and  their  children  orphans. 

**Ah,  gentlemen,  what  was  his  condition  of  mind  at 
that  time?  Men,  judge  your  fellow-man  as  ye  would  be 
judged.  Place  yourselves  as  far  as  in  your  power  lies  in 
the   place   he  stood. 

'*Tt  is  for  the  district  attorney  to  prove  that  the  de- 
fondant  was  sane,  and  if  he  fails  to  do  this  he  has  not 
established  his  case.  He  must  establish  that  he  was  sane 
at  the  time. 

"And  I  ask  you  not  to  violate  any  law,  and  I  ask  you 
to  judge  by  that  law  which  bids  you  do  unto  otliers  what 
you  desire  others  to  do  unto  you. 

**Send  this  young  man  to  his  death  for  what  he  did 
when  goaded  into  frenzy  by  the  persecution  he  had  suffered? 
He  turned  at  last  as  the  weakest  of  created  things  will 
turn — as  a  worm,  it  is  said,  will  turn  against  his  tormen- 
tors— send  him  to  his  death  for  that? 

"Ah,  gentlemen,  recall  the  language  of  the  great  book 
in  which  is  contained  the  wisdom  and  religion  of  the  people 
of  old,  and  I  say  to  you,  Is  Jonathan  to  die  for  ridding 
Israel   of   its  pollution? 

"Is    Jonathan    to    die    for    working    this    great    salvation 
in  Israel? 

"God  forbid!  Not  a  hair  of  hig  head  shall  fall  to  the 
ground,  for  he  walked  with  God  on  that  day, 

"I  now  with  all  solemnity  leave  in  your  hands  the  fate 
of  Harry  K.  Thaw." 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 
'*Thou  Shalt  Not  Kill " - Jer ome. 

PROSECUTOR  IN  TP:RRIFIC  DENUNCIATION  OF  HARRY  THAW 
AS  A  COLD-BLOODED  MURDERER  — ATTACKS  CHARACTER 
OF  EVELYN,  THE  ^^\NGEL  CHILD  WHO  WAS  ALWAYS 
READY  TO  GO  TO  THE  HUM^VN  OGRE^'  WHOM  THAW 
KII-LED  — SNEERS  AT  THE  YOUNG  WIFE  — WARNS  JURY 
AGAINST  "dementia  AMERICANA/^  PLEA  — "  NOTHING 
TO  SHOW  DEFENDANT  WAS  INSANE;  EVERYTHING  TO 
SHOW  HE  WAS  SANE. 

In  his  siipi'ome  effort  to  send  Harry  Thaw  to  the 
electric  chair,  District  Attorney  Jerome  in  his  clos- 
ing- speech  savagely  lashed  the  defendant  as  a  delib- 
erate, cold-blooded  murderer.  lie  bitterly  attacked 
the  characters  of  Thaw  and  his  wife,  referring  to 
Evelyn  as  "the  iingel  child,"  who  was  "always  ready 
to  go  to  tlu;  human  ogre  who  stripped  her  of  her 
virtue,"  and  d(H*lai*ed  her  story  of  her  ruin  by  White 
was  absolutelv  false. 

Mr.  Jerome  lost  no  opportunity  to  sneer  at  the  little 
wife's  tragic  story  and  at  the  chivalry  of  her  husband, 
and  he  paid  his  respects  to  Delmas'  sensational 
"Dementia  Americana,"  or  unwritten  law  plea,  by 
asking  if  it  was  the  higher  law  under  whi(*li  a  man 
may  flaunt  the  woman  through  the  capitals  of  Europe 
for  two  years  as  his  mistress— and  then.  kill. 

262 


ii 


THOU  SHALT  XOT  KILL''  263 


The  prosecutor  warned  the  jury  that  it  would  be  a 
violation  of  their  oaths  to  consider  "Dementia  Ameri- 
cana," declaring  it  had  no  status  on  the  Atlantic  sea- 
board. 

Mr.  Jerome  said:  "This  is  simply  a  common,  vul- 
gar, everyday,  tenderloin  homicide."  lie  denounced 
the  plea  of  Attorney  Delmas  as  "an  appeal  to  the 
passions."  There  could,  he  said,  be  but  one  of  four 
verdicts— murder  in  the  first  degree,  murder  in  the 
second  degree,  manslaughter,  or  "not  guilty  because 
of  insanity." 

The  prosecutor  also  made  a  stirring  appeal  in  be- 
half of  the  slain  architect,  declaring  that  he  had  been 
villainously  maligned.  ^Fr.  Jerome  said  it  seemed  to 
him  that  the  voice  of  the  murdered  Stanford  White 
was  crving  out  to  him,  "Can't  vou  sav  one  word  for 
me?  Must  I  go  down  to  the  fires  of  hell  unheard- 
undefended." 

William  Travers  Jerome,  elected  district  attorney 
of  New  York  on  November  5,  1902,  won  a  great  repu- 
tation as  a  reformer  and  a  foe  of  vice,  gambling, 
crooked  politicians,  and  every  other  evil.  Before  be- 
ing elected  prosecutor,  on  a  fusion  ticket  which  over- 
whelmed the  corrupt  Tammany  hall  machine,  he  was  a 
justice  of  the  court  of  special  sessions  in  New  York 
City. 

As  a  private  lawyer  he  was  favorably  known  for 
the  intense  earnestness  he  put  into  the  eases  of  his 


264  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

clients.  As  a  platform  orator;  a  campaigner  and  a 
hustler  for  votes  he  had  his  name  to  make,  and  he 
made  it.  He  was  the  bright,  particular  star  of  the 
campaign,  and  drew  larger  crowds  and  excited  more 
enthusiasm  from  innnense  assemblies  than  any  other 
speaker  during  the  campaign. 

William  Travers  son  of  the  well-known  Larry 
Jerome,  grew  from  a  puny  baby  to  a  boy  too  delicate 
to  meet  the  rough-and-tumble  life  of  public  schools. 
He  had  a  private  tutor,  and  after  he  left  the  tutor's 
care  he  entered  Amherst  College.  He  remained  there 
three  years,  and  at  the  end  of  that  time  he  left  on 
account  of  poor  health. 

But  it  was  not  in  the  Jerome  blood  to  stay  downed. 
Next  vear  AVilliam  Travers  Jerome  entered  Columbia 

ft/ 

College  Law  School,  and  was  graduated  in  1884. 

After  that  he  traveled  considerably,  practiced  law 
a  little  and  amused  himself  a  little.  By  1888  he  was 
ready  to  settle  down,  and  in  that  year  three  important 
things  happened  in  his  life.  He  was  appointed  As- 
sistant District  Attorney.  He  married  IMiss  Hart,  of 
Sharon,  Conn.    Lawrence  Jerome,  his  father,  died. 

In  the  District  Attorney's  office  Jerome  made  a 
reputation  among  the  other  assistants  as  a  man  who 
never  gave  up  in  the  most  thankless  task,  and  as  an 
embryo  politician  who  never  worked  for  his  own 
pocket.  Jerome  has  his  failings  and  his  friends,  as 
well  as  his  foes,  know  this  well.     IHs  chief  weakness 


''THOU  SHALT  NOT  KILL"   '  265 

is  a  desire  to  sav  startling::  thiims.  He  has  said  sev- 
i'V'dl,  the  most  remarkable  beiug:  an  attack  on  William 
C.  Whitney  and  Boss  Piatt  and  the  declaration  that 
there  was  a  plot  hatched  to  either  kill  him  or  scratch 
him  at  the  polls.  Jerome  was  called  to  time  on  these 
propositions,  and  he  retracted — but  he  did  it  without 
crawling.  Jerome  is  too  outspoken  to  be  a  successful 
politician.  His  ag-gressiveness  and  his  fearlessness  are 
-idrairable. 

Mr.  Jerome  ^s  speech  was  as  follows : 

**If  it  please  your  honor  and  gentlemen  of  tlic  juiy, 
you  seem,  as  far  as  I  can  judge,  to  have  l)een  wandering 
through  a  weird  deal  of  romance  in  the  past  few  days.  ]t 
is  not  on  statements  such  as  you  have  listened  to  that  the 
life  of  a  human  individual  on  the  one  hand  nor  the  safety 
of  the   community  on  the   other  depends. 

''And  important  as  it  is  that  no  human  life  shall  be 
l)ut  out  except  justly,  yet  it  is  equally  important  that  it 
be  put  out  if  justice  demands  it. 

''As  to  this  'dementia  Americana,'  which  'prevails 
from  the  Canadian  line  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico' — and  mostly 
on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico — does  it  wait  three  years  and  glare 
at  its  enemy  and  then  kill? 

"Does  til  is  'dementia  Americana'  flaunt  the  woman  it 
loves  for  two  long  years  through  the  capitals  of  Europe 
and  then  kill?  'Dementia  Americana'  never  hides  behind 
the  skirts  of  a  woman;  'dementia  Americana'  never  puts 
a  woman  on  the  stand  to  lay  bare  her  shame  to  protect  it- 
no  woman  could  in  the  category  where  'dementia  Amer- 
icana' prevails. 

"  'When  I  discharged  those  shots  into  his  head,'  said 
Thaw,   'I   didn't   know   I   was   discharging  shots.     I   didn't 


266  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

kuow  it  wag  Stanford   White.     I  didn't  know  I  was  killing 
him,  nor  did  I  know  it  was  wrong.' 

' '  It  was  wrong  under  the  law.  When  the  anarchists 
threw  the  bombs  in  Chicago  they  had  no  personal  grievance 
against  any  of  the  four  policemen  who  were  killed.  It  is 
not  a  question  whether  the  slayer  justified  himself,  not  the 
form  of  his  own  conscience.  It  is  the  law  of  the  land  that 
must    be   satisfied. 

''Let  me  first  deal  with  the  dead  man.  A  middle-aged 
man,  care-gray  already,  a  man  with  a  wife  and  children, 
a  man  of  position  in  the  community,  a  man  of  genius.  He 
comes  into  the  life  of  this  girl.  He  assists  her  and  her 
family.  Does  he  make  a  single  insidious  advance  until 
the  night  mentioned  here? 

"Does  he  give  her  a  single  rich  gift?  Why,  it  was 
stipulated  here  that  the  gifts  were  trifles — a  hat,  a  coat. 
Did  he  ti-y  to  dazzle  her  with  rich  gifts?  Did  he  try  to 
see  if  she  -would  yield  to  drink?  N*o.  Night  after  night 
at  dinners  he  would  tell  her  she  could  have  but  one  glass 
of  champagne.  In  the  company  of  actresses,  and  those 
miserable  persons  about  town  who  seem  to  think  that  the 
society  of  a  chorus  girl  is  the  only  one  for  them,  did  ho 
not  seek  to  protect  her  from  them? 

''This  angel  child,  as  Delmas  depicted  her — this  chaste, 
good  being,  cannot  recall  the  time  within  three  months  of 
it  when   this  brute  ruined  her. 

"When  she  could  not  fix  the  time  of  her  life's  wreck 
my  learned  friend  from  the  Pacific  slope  concluded,  'Why 
don't  you  prove  an  alibi  for  Stanford  White?  The  doors 
are  thrown  wide  open.'  When  tlie  people  called  Wittans 
to  testify  that  there  was  no  such  drug  as  she  described  the 
door  was  closed.  When  Eichemeyer,  the  photographer,  was 
called  to  fix  the  date  of  the  event — it  occurred  the  night 
of  the  (lay  after  this  picture  was  taken — the  door  was 
closed. 


"TBOTJ  SHALT  NOT  KILL''  267 

''The  learned  jivlge  ruled  justly.  I  offered  this  not  as 
new  evidence,  but  to  call  the  story  of  the  'angel  child.' 

' '  Maidens  know  well  enough  to  appreciate  the  distinc- 
tion between  right  and  wrong — their  blushes,  their  reserve, 
their  shrinking  would  impress  upon  them  indelibly  the 
time  when  any  such  attempt  is  made  to  destroy  their  purity. 
Was  she  brought  up  more  carefully  than  your  own  daugh- 
ters? 

"And  yet  she  meets  him  again  and  again  and  again. 
She  meets  him  eight  or  ten  times  at  the  tower.  She  meets 
him  in  the  Twenty-fourth  street  place  because  she  believed 
others  would  be  there.  And  then  all  these  subsequent  at- 
tacks were  attacks  with  liquor.  After  all  these,  there  was 
marked  for  identification,  with  greatest  ostentation,  a  num- 
ber of  letters  written  };y  Stanford   White — this  great   ogre! 

"And  yet  you  will  recall  that  on  one  occasion  a  Mr.  P. 
called  at  the  Twenty-fourth  street  house  and  found  the 
angel   child  downstairs   undressing. 

"Was  there  one  of  tiiesc  letters  put  in  evidence?  Is  it 
credible  that  if  a  single  one  of  these  letters  contained  the 
slightest  intimation  of  indecency  that  it  would  not  have 
been  put   in   evidence? 

"C'ould  there  have  T)een  these  successive  ill-treatments 
month  after  month  and  yet  not  a  single  line  in  all  those 
letters  except  words  of  tender  appreciation?  CJontrast 
tliose  letters  with  this,  for  instance:  'Men  celebrated  for 
licking  toes,'  the  letter  of  this  most  modern  St.  George, 
who  leads  the  angel  child  up  to  the  true  liglit.  After  days 
of  description  of  the  l)aseness  and  debauchery  of  Stanford 
White,  it  seems  as  if  the  spirit  of  Stanford  White  itself 
would  have  come  here  to  say  to  Evelyn  Thaw:  'Whiitl 
Not  one  word  of  kindness — not  one  word  to  say  for  me?'  " 

Here  Jerome's  voice  broke,  his  chin  quivered,  and  he 
solibed  for  a  moment.     Drying  his  eyes,  he  continued: 

"The  law  will   not    allow   it."      (Jerome,  still   talking  of 


268  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

the  spirit  of  White,  added:  ''I  am  not  on  trial.  I  have 
no   one   here  to   speak   for  me,") 

Jerome's   eyes  filled  with  more  tears  as  he  went  on: 

*  *  *  Can  you  not  say  one  word  for  me  ?  Only  one  word 
for  me,'  the  spirit  seemed  to  say." 

The  tears  started  down  Jerome's  face.  He  faced  the 
jury,  holding  aloft  the  photograph  taken  by  Eichmeyer — 
the  one  on  the  bear  rug.  Then  he  cried  with  evident 
feeling: 

"Can't  you  say  for  me  something?  On  the  stand  she 
said,  *T  know  no  one  who  was  nicer  or  kinder  than  Stan- 
ford White,  except  for  this  one  awful  thing.  He  was  excep- 
tionally  kind    to   me   and    to   my  family. 

"  'Outside  of  this  one  thing  he  was  a  grand  man.  And 
when  I  said  so  to  Mr,  Thaw  he  said  that  only  made  Stan- 
ford  White  the  more   dangerous. 

"  *He  had  a  strong  personality  and  had  many  friends, 
and  they  believed  in  him  and  could  not  believe  anything 
bad  about  him.  And  even  when  they  believed,  they  said: 
"Too  bad.     He  is  so  good."  ' 

"Can  there  be  any  grander,  better  panegyric,  uttered 
than  this  by  this  girl  on  the  stand.  I  am  here  not  to 
defend  Stanford  White.  That  he  had  his  faults,  his  gross 
faults,  no  one  will  deny. 

"But  there  is  a  difference  between  the  brute,  and  the 
unchaste.  Her  own  words  have  ruined  this  .Jekyl  and  Hyde 
theory. 

"Next  time,  Mr.  Hartridge,  that  you  take  things  and 
j»:ij)ers  belonging  to  Evelyn  Thaw  out  of  a  storage  ware- 
house, take  good  care  that  you  do  not  leave  behind  such 
a  book  as  this. 

"  C^an  it  be  possible  that  now,  at  twenty-two,  she  could 
look  back  to  the  time  when  she  was  fifteen  and  pronounce 
so  grand  a  jianegyric  upon  a  brute? 


"THOU  SHALT  XOT  KILL''  269 

"A  wealthy  man,  finding,  God  only  knows  why,  enjoy- 
ment in  her  company — see  how  young  she  seems  today 
(pointing  to  Evelyn  Thaw) — think  how  young  she  must 
have  been  then — that  a  rich  man  should  have  tried  to  help 
her  is  consistent  with  his  conduct. 

"That  when  she  was  told  by  the  manager  of  the  'Flo- 
rodora'  company,  to  whom  she  had  applied,  that  they  were 
not  'running  a  baby  farm' — that  a  man  like  Stanford  White 
should  have  taken  care  of  her  and  protected  her — is  cer- 
tainly not  inconsistent  with  the  belief  that  her  relations 
with   him  were  pure. 

''Again,  it  is  consistent  that  their  relations  were  not 
pure.  This  girl  alone  knows.  But  I  submit  this  girl  is  not 
telling  the  truth.     There  is  no  proof  of  the  wrongdoing." 

At  this  point  Jerome  asked  that  a  recess  be  taken.  At 
the  reconvening  of  court,  Mr.  Jerome  resumed  as  follows: 

"I  have  carefully  laid  out  to  you  what  we  are  here  for 
in  our  respective  duties.  I  have  presented  briefly  as  I 
could   the  facts  that   I   have   adduced. 

'  *  The  head  on  which  I  am  now  dwelling  is,  '  What  is 
the  defense  that  the  defendant  makes  to  this  formal 
charge?'  I  deem  it  necessary  to  dwell  at  some  length  on 
the  character  of  the  three  persons  who  figure  most  in  this 
case.  However,  much  as  we  may  disagree,  we  come  back 
to  the  issue:  'Did  he  know  the  nature  and  quality  of  his 
act?' 

"  'I  did  not  know  it  was  a  self-cocking  revolver  and 
I  (lid  not  know  1  walked  toward  Stanford  White  and  J 
did  not  know  it  was  against  the  law  of  the  land  to  fire 
the    shots.' 

"  fn  regard  to  the  girl,  we  may  esteem  her,  however 
niiich  or  little  we  may  think  of  her  veracity.  Nothing  can 
go    out    to    her    except    our    pity.      If   these    things    did    m^t 


270  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

occur,  if  she  perjured  herself  it   seems  even  more  that  she 
needs   our  pity. 

"What  chance  did  she  ever  have  in  life?  Her  father 
died  early,  her  mother  led  a  life  of  shifting  about  from 
place  to  place.  We  all  know  what  life  on  the  stage  is. 
We  all  see  some  of  it.  Why  do  you  suppose  Garland,  a 
married  man,  was  following  this  girl  about;  why  do  you 
suppose  even  Thaw  was  pursuing  her  with  flowers?  This 
little  girl  knew  something  of  life  before  she  met  Mr.  White. 

' '  Counsel  for  the  defense  speaks  of  her  fatal  gift  of 
beauty.  It  is  ever  thus.  We  are  all  men  of  the  world  and 
we  all  pass  along  the  great  white  way  of  this  city  and  see 
its  effects   daily. 

''Why  do  you  suppose  Garland  was  paying  her  atten- 
tion? W^hy  was  Thaw  sending  her  American  Beauty  roses? 
Why  did  he  pursue  her  even  to  her  home?  I  don't  wish  to 
speak  too  harshly  of  this  mother.  I  will  read  what  she 
says  of  Garland. 

"  'My  mother  was  not  entirely  pleased  with  the  rela- 
tions of  Mr.  Garland.' 

"What  were  the  relations  that  caused  the  mother  to 
make  objection?  They  were  very  poor  and  the  accjuaiut- 
ance  of  White  and  Garland  was  desirable.  The  girl,  you 
know,  was  sent  to  school.  The  whole  situation  centered 
about  the  girl.  It  was  she  who,  in  the  long  run,  brought 
about  all   these  occurrences. 

"Next  time,  Mr.  Hartridge,  that  j'ou  take  things  and 
papers  belonging  to  Evelyn  Thaw  out  of  a  storage  ware- 
house, take  good  care  that  you  do  uot  leave  behind  such  a 
book   as  this." 

Mr.  Jerome  displayed  a  flexible  leather-bound  book  in 
"which  there  appeared  a  good  doal  of  written  matter.  Je- 
rome then  raised  the  <liary,  or  book,  and  shook  it  before 
the    jury.      Mr.    Hartridge    objected    at   this    i)oint    and    said 


i  I 


THOU  SHALT  NOT  KILL''  271 


that  there  was  no  evidence  that  he  had  taken  the  docu- 
ments from  the  warehouse.  Mr.  Hartridge  was  overruled 
by  Justice  Fitzgerald.  Jerome  then  read  the  one  entry  of 
the  diary  which  had  been  admitted  in  evidence.     It  was: 

"  'J  jumped  right  in  and  proceeded  to  be  good.  The 
first  thing  I  saw  was  my  virtuous  couch.  I  wonder  how 
far  I  am  from  Hector's — Hector's  and  the  Great  White 
Way. ' 

**  Significant,  I  consider  that,  indeed  I  do,"  said  Jerome, 
and    then    continued    reading   from    the    girl's    school    diary. 

''  'These  things  have  always  been  of  that  kind.  Not 
one  of  them  will  ever  be  anything.  Mrs.  De  Mille  was 
very   nice   and   agreeable. 

"  'I  was  taken  into  the  house  and  shown  all  the  celerity 
of  a  soubrette  and  proceeded  to  get  shy.  When  we  drove 
up  to  the  house  Mrs.  De  Mille 's  son  came  out  smoking  a 
j>ipo,  and  I  must  admit  he  is  a  pie-faced  mutt. 

*'  *I  was  taken  into  the  house  and  shown  to  mj'  room. 
Tt  is  neither  large  nor  small;  has  Japanese  paper  on  the 
walls.  There  is  a  virtuous  white  bed,  a  girl's  bureau  and 
a    washstand.'  " 

Then    Jerome  went   on: 

*'Tliis  shows  that  this  child  played  one  man  against  the 
other.  She  went  to  Paris  on  Thaw's  money  with  White's 
letter  of  credit  in  her  pocket.  This  child  that  believed 
not  at  all  in  the  virtue  of  women — this  child  who  had  been 
in  tile  'Florodora'  company — this  child  who  had  been 
yachting  with  Garland — this  child  who  had  been  to  the  late 
suppers  where  risque  stories  and  intoxicated  women  pre- 
vailed. This  child  thought  it  was  nothing  to  l)e  a  good 
inother — that  she  would  rather  become  a  great  actress  first, 
and  she  arrived  in  Paris  fully  convinced  that  there  is  no 
virtue  in  womankind,  she  being  eighteen  and  a  half  at 
*that   time. 


272  THE  GREAT  TH.UY  CASE 

' '  This  is  the  angel  child  described  by  Mr.  Delmas.  And 
then  we  are  told  that  in  Paris  the  child  loved  Thaw  and 
in  the  greatness  of  her  love  renounced  him  and  was  willing 
to  come  back  to  the  chorus  and  the  studios.  She  made  this 
renunciation  and  when  she  had  done  so  she  traveled  about 
Europe  with  this  St.  George  who  had  revealed  to  her  that 
there  was  chastity  in  women,  and  then  she  leaves  him  for 
some  reason,  which  I  will  dwell  upon  later,  and  comes  to 
Xew   York   with    his   money. 

**She  arrives  in  this  city  on  October  24,  1903,  and  is 
found  a  few  days  later  in  the  office  of  Abraham  Hummel 
in  the  company  of  Stanford  White,  the  man  who  had  iSO 
dreadfully  ill-used  her.  If  not  another  thing  was  found  in 
that  affidavit  than  the  signature  of  Evelyn  Nesbit,  this 
date,  which  appears  opposite  that  name,  would  be  signifi- 
cant. 

"The  significant  thing  is  that  within  twenty-four  hours 
before  she  saw  him  on  Sunday  her  great  love  had  been 
undermined  so  that  she  deserted  this  man  for  tlio  monster 
who  had   wrecked   her   life. 

"By  stories  too  evil  to  repeat,  she  says,  she  was  turned 
against  Thaw.  And  then,  when  he  returned,  she  tells  him 
of  what  she  had  heard  about  him,  and  he  says,  'Poor  little 
Evelyn.      Somebody    has   deceived   you. ' 

"And  when  I  call  her  renunciation  of  this  young  man 
sublime  T  did  not  do  so  with  a  sneer.  Such  a  renunciation, 
if  it  really  occurred,  is  unparalleled  in  history. 

"Great  actress,  indeed!  She  thought  slie  could  ])lay  on 
you  like  so  many  cliildren.  Look  at  those  i)ictures  taken 
when  she  was  sixteen  years  old — does  she  look  anything 
like  the  way  she  appeared  in   court? 

"She  appears  in  these  early  photogra])hs  in  a  way  which 
you  could  not  allow  a  daughter  of  yours  of  sixteen  to  ap- 
pear. 


(( 


THOU  SHALT  NOT  KILL''  273 


' '  She  comes  here  in  her  little  school-girl  dress — her 
little  white,  turned-down  collars,  which  cover  all  but  the 
flowing  ends  of  a  pretty  childlike  bow-tie.  She  sits  in  the 
witness  chair  and  tries  to  impress  on  you  this  assumed, 
youthful   childishness. 

'  *  There  she  was  a  poor,  wronged,  orphan  child,  whom 
Thaw  would  take  to  his  arms  and  protect.  Sir  Galahad  took 
that  angel  child — took  her  from  her  mother  and  flaunted 
her  through  every  capital  of  Europe.  'Dementia  Ameri- 
cana*— the  higher,  unwritten  law!  Why,  you  may  paint 
Stanford  White  in  as  black  color  as  you  wish,  but  there 
are  no  colors  in  the  artists'  box  black  enough  to  paint 
this  Sir  Galahad.  Why  should  this  Sir  Galahad  be  aban- 
doned by  this  girl?  Why  should  she  leave  him?  For  some 
reason  she  did  leave  him.  Why?  Let  us  go  into  the  Hum- 
mel affidavit. 

''What  <lo  we  find  Thaw  doing?  We  find  him  wrapping 
$;")()  around  American  Beauty  roses  and  sending  them  to 
her.     Is  that  the  course  of  honorable  courtship? 

"  'Rector's,  I  know,  is  not  the  proper  place  for  an  inno- 
cent young  person,  but  I  always  had  a  weakness  for  it.' 
(Mr.  Jerome  read  from  the  diary.) 

"  'Tt  is  my.  ambition  to  see  things  and  then  settle 
down;  but  I  want  to  be  a  good  actress  before  I  settle  down 
to  u  hiiindiiim  existence.'  " 

Jerome  again  read  from  the  diary  of  the  girl,  Evelyn 
Nesbit. 

"You  have  heard  what  took  j)lace  in  Paris — mother, 
daughter  and  Thaw  were  living  together.  Thaw  asked  her 
there  to  be  his  wife  and  she  refused,  and  when  he  asked 
her   why    she   said: 

"  'Because.'  And  he  asked,  'Is  it  Stanford  White?' 
and  she  said,  'Yes.'  And  then  we  are  told  she  gave  him 
the  entire  story. 


k 


274  THE  GREAT  TEA^Y  CASE 

''She  had  nothing  ahead  of  her.  There  was  a  man  she 
saw  she  loved.  He  offered  her  his  wealth  in  return  for 
that  love.  She  laid  it  aside — all  the  comforts  of  life. 
Wasn't   that   a    sublime    resignation? 

' '  He  offered  her  a  haven  of  rest — rest  K)r  the  wanderer. 
And  yet  so  great  was  that  love  for  him  that  she  would  not 
accept  him.  Those  were  noble  words  for  this  man  to  say. 
This  girl's  renunciation  was  truly  sublime — if  true.  She 
might  not  have  known  how  Stanford  White,  like  tlie  brute 
negro  of  the  South,  would  look  upon  his  victim  with  pas- 
sion, but  she  did  not  know  that  it  was  wrong. 

''I  don't  think  Hummel  is  an  upright  man,  and  he  is  in 
the  position  he  is  in  just  because  I  put  him  there.  He 
will  go  to  jail  and  he  will  stay  there  just  as  long  as  I  can 
keep  him  there.  He  has  lived  as  a  blackguarding  black- 
mailer for  twenty  years  and  anything  coming  from  his 
hands  must  be  viewed  by  you  justly  with  suspicion. 

"But  Abraham  Sn^^decker  swore  that  he  took  that  affi- 
davit to  Evelyn  Nesbit  there  in  the  Madison  Square  tower 
and  that  she  read  it  and  signed  it.  Let  us  see  what  she 
herself  says  about  that  affidavit.  The  itinerary  set  down 
in  the  affidavit  corresponds  exactly  with  her  description 
of  it.  Were  all  these  things  put  in  there  by  Hummel  f 
Strange  touches  for  this  old  blackmailing,  blackguarding 
scoundrel  to  have  put  into  that  affidavit — such  little 
touches  as  reference  to  a  watch  and  to  a  hypodermic 
needle  used  for  morphine,  which  she  saj's  she  found  in 
Thaw's  trunk. 

"I  will  concede  that  this  story  may  have  been  dressed 
up  by  the  lawyer.  Can  we  think  of  the  suggestions  in  her 
own  testimony  of  the  Kthel  Thomas  suit?  Can  we  think 
of  the  rumors  of  Dillingham's  story?  Can  we  fail  to  re- 
mark upon  that  passage  in  his  lotter  in  which  he  says, 
*He   will   never   hurt   you/    referring   to    himself? 


"THOU  SHALT  NOT  KILL''  275 

"Snydecker  says  that  affidavit  was  taken  to  the  Twenty- 
seventh  street  studio  and  her  signature  appears  exactly 
opposite  the  date. 

"Strange  that  after  her  return  from  Europe — from 
Thaw — she  should  immediately  have  gone  to  him,  to  White. 

**A  knight  of  old,  redressing  the  wrongs  of  injured 
maidens,  would  not  have  gone  to  Eector's  at  2  o'clock  in 
the  morning,  would  not  have  gone  to  cakewalks  and  cafes, 
to  the  Dead  Eat  in  Paris  and  resorts  in  other  places,  to 
remain  there  all  night  and  go  home  when  the  market 
wakes. 

' '  Almost  within  earshot  of  his  wife  he  asked  Smith — 
this  knight  of  old   asked: 

"Would  you  like  to  meet  a  nice,  buxom  brunette?  Are 
you  much  married?  I  am  going  abroad  and  I  can  put  you 
next. ' 

"Every  element,  gentlemen,  in  this  case  is  simply  an 
ordinary,  mere,  vulgar,  every-day,  Tenderloin,  low,  sordid 
murder. 

"If  this  rich  young  man  instead  of  being  Harry  Thaw, 
the  son  of  a  millionaire  of  Pittsburg,  had  been  a  poor  Ital- 
ian and  his  victim,  instead  of  a  man  of  artistic  tempera- 
ment, a  maker  of  plaster  casts,  and  a  girl  whom  they  quar- 
reled about  was  a  chorus  girl  in  the  London  Theater,  how 
long  would  brainstorms  and   paranoia   have  prevailed? 

"Simply  a  mere,  ordinary  Tenderloin  homicide.  Be- 
cause she  has  a  pretty  face  and  a  child-like  manner,  she  is 
coming  here  to  toll  ;i  tissue  of  lies  to  prevent  you  gentle- 
men from  putting  a  deliberate,  cold-blooded  murderer  un- 
der ground. 

"Will  you  gentlemen  acquit  a  cold-blooded,  cowardly, 
deliberate  murderer  on  the  ground  of  'dementia  Amer- 
icana"? 

"Thaw   himself,   the    girl    swore,   accused   her   of   having 


276  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

resumed  relations  with  White  after  she  returned  from 
Paris.  Where  does  this  man's  conduct  show  aught  that 
he  did  not  know,  the  quality  and  nature  of  his  act?  We 
have  the  letters  A  to  I.  The  girl  says  that  at  times  in 
1903  Thaw  was  drinking  heavily." 

Jerome  argued  that  neither  Thaw's  letters  nor  his  will 
indicated  insanity,  but  rather  showed  that  he  possessed 
a  knowledge  of  legal  limitations.  His  letters  he  described 
as  erratic  and  vulgar,  the  product  of  a  rich  illiterate." 
Jerome  continued: 

'*He  knew  enough  to  automobile  through  Europe  with 
this  girl.  He  knew  enough  to  warn  Longfellow  to  be  on 
the  lookout  for  legal  actions,  and  yet  he  did  not  know 
that  when  he  shot  White  he  was  doing  wrong.  Even  the 
codicil  drawn  in  his  own  language  runs  in  the  legal  way. 

*  *  Everything  shows  a  sane  mind.  There  is  not  a  thing 
to  indicate  a  crazy  mind.  There  is  evidence  here  that  he 
consulted  Roger  O  'Mara  before  he  carried  a  revolver.  He 
was  afraid   of  the   Monk  Eastman  gang. 

"Is  it  such  an  unknown  thing  that  a  man  should  be 
followed  by  a  gang  of  hirelings f  Was  the  arrest  and  trial 
of  the  Monk  Eastman  gang  in  Jersey  a  few  years  ago  a 
figment  of  inmgination  ?  Where  was  the  delusion  in  that  f 
How  easy  it  is  for  a  man  of  this  kind  to  store  away  his 
'dementia  Americana'  for  three  years!  Where  is  the  delu- 
sion in  a  man's  believing  that  he  is  in  danger  from  a 
gang'? 

"Don't  let's  blow  hot  and  cold  at  the  same  time.  In 
one  breath  we  are  told  that  there  was  such  a  gang  hired, 
and  then  we  are  told  it  was  all  a  delusion, 

"There  was  such  a  gang — and  i  am  sorry  to  have  to 
admit    there   was, 

"Why  did  he  leave  his  money  to  the  iSociety  for  the 
fcjuppression  of  Vice?     Was  that  a   delusion? 


(( 


THOU  SHALT  NOT  KILL''  277 


*'And  he  says  in  a  letter  that  they  could  find  pictures 
in  White's  studio  which  were  lewd,  but  perhaps  within 
the  law.     Was  that  a  delusion? 

* '  Will  you  gentlemen  acquit  a  cold-blooded,  cowardly, 
deliberate  murderer  on  the  ground  of  'dementia  Amer- 
icana?' 

''If  the  only  thing  that  lies  between  every  man  and 
his  enemy  is  a  brainstorm,  then  let  every  man  pack  a  gun. 
There  are  two  things  I  want  to  say.  They  are:  'Vengeance 
is  mine,  saith  the  Lord,'  and  that  other  law  that  was  thun- 
dered from   Mount  Sinai: 

"  'Thou  Shalt  not  kill!'  " 


"CHAPTER  XXIV. 
The  Judge's  Charge  to  the  Jury — Thaw  in  Collapse. 

JUSTICE  FITZGERALD  DEALS  BLOW  WHEN  HE  TELLS  THE 
TWELVE  ^^GOOD  MEN  AND  TRUE^^  THEY  MUST  IGNORE 
THE  ^^  UNWRITTEN  LAW '^  — READS  THE  STATUTE  GOV- 
p]RNING  INSANITY  AS  A  DEFENSE  — BURDEN  OF  PROOF  OF 
MADNESS  PLACED  ON  THE  DEPENDANT  — TELLS  WHAT 
VERDICTS  MAY  BE  RENDERED  — "  YOU  MUST  BE  GLIDED 
ENTIRELY'  ON  THE  EVIDENCE;  CLAMOR,  PREJUDICE,  OR 
SYMPATHY    MUST    NOT    PREVAIL.'* 

Upon  the  heels  of  District  Attorney  Jerome's  clos- 
ing address,  Justice  Fitzgerald  dealt  a  terrific  blow  to 
the  defense  in  his  charge  to  the  jury.  Every  word 
that  he  uttered  seemed  to  the  lawyers  attending  the 
trial  to  be  a  plea  that  the  jurors  ignore  the  most  tell- 
ing i)oints  of  Delmas'  address  and  confine  themselves 
strictlv  to  the  facts  and  the  law  on  the  statute  books, 
ignoring  the  "unwritten  law." 

Thaw  heard  the  charge  with  rapidly  paling  face, 
and  he  almost  collapsed  when  the  judge  said  that  the 
(h'f'endant  must  prove  his  insanity  before  he  could 
look  for  a  verdict  of  acciuittal.  This  charge  and  the 
bitter  closing  speech  of  Jerome  so  worked  upon  the 
Feelings  of  Harry  that  he  was  in  a  sad  coiulition  when 
he  was  taken  back  to  the  prisoner's  room.  A  call  from 
his  wile,  however,  cheered  him  up,  ami  he  said: 

278 


JUDGE'S  CHARGE  279 

' '  Well,  dearie,  we  must  make  the  best  of  it,  anyway. 
Cheer  up,  little  girl,  everything  will  come  out  all 
right." 

The  members  of  the  Thaw  family  were  low  in  spir- 
its, especially  when  they  heard  that  the  keeper  of  the 
prisoners'  room  had  said: 

''The  judge's  cold-blooded  charge  has  scared  Harry 
half  to  death.  He  has  finally  been  made  to  realize  what 
he  is  'up  against,'  " 

The  charge  of  Justice  Fitzgerald  was  as  follows : 

''Gentlemen  of  the  Jury,  it  now  becomes  my  duty  to 
give  you  such  instructions  as  are  necessarj^  to  enable  you 
to  perform  your  duty  as  jurors  and  to  define  for  your  in- 
formation the  legal  principles  by  which  you  are  to  be  gov- 
erned in  reaching  your  conclusion  of  the  evidence. 

"It  is  particularly  gratifying  to  me  that  you  were 
selected  by  the  people  and  the  defense  as  fair-minded 
men,  after  the  examination  of  337  men  and  the  peremptory 
challenges  on  each  side  had  been  exhausted.  The  care  with 
which  you  were  severally  selected  to  ascertain  the  condition 
of  mind  of  each  of  you  as  an  impartial  juror  must  have 
impressed  you  with  the  sj)irit  of  justice.  It  must  have  im- 
pressed you  with  that  spirit  of  justice  with  which  the  stat- 
utes regulating   the   acts  of  the   orderly   are  governed. 

"The  admonition  so  frequently  given  at  the  close  of 
the  sessions  of  this  trial  were  given  in  accordance  with 
the  law,  that  you  might  remain  impartial.  Let  me  impress 
on  you  the  importance  of  the  issue  you  are  to  decide. 

"The  life  of  tlio  deceased  was  in  the  protection  of  the 
law  and  had  been  taken  by  the  defendant.  And  the  de- 
fendant is  here  to  answer  to  the  law  for  that. 

"You  must  take  the  law  absolutely  from  the  court,  but 


280  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

of  the  facts  you  are  the  sole  judges.  A  defendant  to  a 
criminal  action  is  presumed  to  be  innocent  until  the  con- 
trary can  be  proved,  and  in  the  case  of  a  reasonable  doubt 
he   is   entitled    to   it. 

"Let  me  begin  by  instructing  you  on  the  law  of  homi- 
cide. The  statute  on  homicide  is  divided  into  two  di\  i- 
sions.  which  are  again  subdivided.  The  two  chief  divi- 
sions are  homicide  that  is  criminal  and  homicide  that  is 
not. 

"Criminal  homicides  are  classed  as  murder  in  the  first 
degree,  murder  in  the  second  degree  and  manslaughter  in 
the  first  and  second  degree.  Homicide  unless  it  is  excus- 
able or  justifiable  is  murder  in  the  first  degree,  when  com- 
mitted with  deliberate  design  to  effect  the  death  of  the 
person  killed. 

*  *  If  committed  with  design  to  effect  death  without  pre- 
meditation or  deliberation,  it  would  not  constitute  murder 
in  the  first  degree  but  would  constitute  murder 
in  the  second  degree.  If  committed  without  design  to 
effect  death  in  the  heat  of  i)assion  with  a  deadly  weapon 
that  would  constitute  manslaughter  in  the  first  degree. 

"AH  lesser  criminal  homicides  are  embraced  within  the 
definition  of  manslaughter  in  the   second   degree. 

"Homicides  not  criminal  are  classed  as  justifiable  and 
excusable  homicide.  Homicide  is  justifiable  when  com- 
mitted in  the  lawful  defense  of  the  slayer  or  his  wife  or 
child  or  master  or  servant  or  anybody  connected  with  him 
in    close    relation. 

"The  defense  here  is  that  the  defendant  was  insane  at 
the  time  he  committed  the  act  and  the  law  applicable  in 
the  defense  of  insanity  is  found  in  sections  20  and  21  of 
the  Penal  Code.  Section  20  provides  that  an  act  done  by  a 
person  who  is  an  idiot,  imbecile  or  lunatic  is  not  a  crime. 

"But  section   21   limits  section   20   as   follows: 


JUDGE'S  CHARGE  281 

''  'A  person  is  not  excusable  from  criminal  liability  as 
an  idiot,  imbecile,  lunatic  or  insane  person  except  upon 
proof  that  at  the  time  of  committing  the  alleged  crime  he 
was  laboring  under  such  a  defect  of  reason  as  either  not 
to  know  the  nature  or  quality  of  the  act  or  to  know  that 
the  act  was  wrong,' 

"Before  murder  in  the  first  degree  can  be  done,  a 
distinguished  jurist  has  said,  it  must  appear  that  there  was 
some  act  of  deliberation  and  premeditation.  This,  of 
necessity,  is  for  the  comprehension  of  the  jury. 

*^If  you  are  satisfied  that  there  was  a  design  to  effect 
death,  but  without  deliberation  and  premeditation,  you 
may  find  murder  in  the  second  degree.  The  defendant  may 
be  convicted  under  this  indictment  of  murder  in  the  first  or 
second  degree  or  manslaughter  in  the  first  degree. 

"When  it  appears  that  the  defendant  committed  a  crime 
and  there  is  reasonable  doubt  of  which  degree  he  is  guilty, 
he  can  be  convicted  of  the  lowest  only. 

"As  I  have  tried  to  impress  upon  you  since  this  trial 
began,  the  character  of  the  victim  furnishes  neither  excuse 
nor  justification.  The  general  character  of  tha  victim  is 
not  the  issue,  and  no  matter  how  bad  he  might  have  been 
he  was  entitled  to  the  protection  of  the  law. 

"The  personal  avenger  of  private  or  ])ublic  wrongs  is 
not  recognized  under  our  law.  Every  person  is  under  the 
protection  of  the  law.  Good  or  bad,  exalted  or  humble,  all 
are  alike  covered  by  its  shield. 

"The  plea  of  not  guilty  is  a  denial  of  every  material 
allegation  charged  aaginst  the  defendant,  and  such  evi- 
dence may  be  presented  as  will  offset  those  allegations  and 
establish  his  insanity  at  the  time  of  the  commission  of  the 
act. 

"The  law  presumes  that  sanity  is  the  normal  condition 


282  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

of  man,  and  wherein  insanity  is  the  plea  that  becomes  the 
crucial  question  for  the  jury  to  decide. 

**If  there  existed  in  the  mind  of  the  defendant  an  in- 
sane illusion  it  is  not  an  excuse  unless  the  illusion  is  of 
such  a  character  that  if  true  it  would  result  in  his  injury. 

''Proof  of  partial  or  incipient  insanity  is  not  sufficient 
as  an  excuse.  The  settled  law  of  the  state  is  that  so  long 
as  that  power  to  appreciate  the  nature  and  quality  of  the 
act  is  present  no  man  must  commit  crime  if  he  w^ould 
escape   the   consequences. 

"Under  the  rules  of  evidence  the  story,  claimed  by  the 
defendant  prior  and  subsequent  to  this  tragedy  and  prior 
is  admittd,  not  as  affecting  the  character  of  the  deceased, 
but  that  you  might  consider  what  effect  such  a  story  had 
on  the  defendant's  mind. 

*'In  considering  her  story,  her  credibility  as  a  witness 
is  highly  material,  and  everything  that  she  has  said  or 
done  must  be  taken  into  consideration.  Her  admissions  re- 
garding the  relations  'existing  between  herself  and  the 
defendant  prior  and  subsequent  to  this  tragedy  and  prior 
to  her  marriage  or  any  other  act  should  be  weighed  in  con- 
nection  with   her   story. 

"A  wide  latitude  was  allowed  on  cross-examination. 
You  should  give  due  credit  to  all  that  was  developed  along 
with  other  facts. 

''There  has  been  no  denial  entered  here  that  death 
resulted  from  pistol  shot  wounds  inflicted  by  the  defendant, 
he  committed  the  act.  It  was  not  incumbent  upon  the 
prosecution  to  introduce  preliminary  testimony  to  show 
that  he  was  sane.  The  burden  of  proof  is  upon  the  defense. 
Whoever  denies  sanity  must  prove  that  insanity  is  present. 
The  burden  of  proving  a  crime  is  on  the  prosecution, 
but  the  burden  of  overthrowing  sanity  is  on  the  person 
claiming  it. 


JUDGE'S  CHARGE  283 

' '  The  hypothetical  questions  which  were  answered  by 
the  experts  assumed  certain  facts  and  the  answer  whs 
only  the  opinion  of  the  expert  on  those  assumed  facts. 

''You  are  not  obliged  nor  are  you  permitted  to  accept 
opinions  as  you  would  facts.  In  considering  the  testimony 
of  medical  experts,  you  are  to  consider  their  experience 
and  knowledge,  and  you  should  consider  the  quality  of  the 
medical   testimony  and  not  its   quantity. 

"The  so-called  irresistible  impulse  has  no  place  in  the 
law  and  is  not  an  excuse,  nor  is  every  person  of  a  dis- 
ordered mind  excused.  While  the  burden  of  proof  of  in- 
sanity is  on  the  defendant,  he  is  also  entitled  to  every 
reasonable  doubt  on  the  subject.  If  the  defendant  knew 
the  nature  or  the  quality  of  his  act,  or  knew  that  the  act 
was  wrong,  then  he  committed  a  crime. 

"As  to  the  distinction  between  reasonable  doubt  and 
a  possible  doubt  you  were  thoroughly  examined  when  you 
were  about  to  become  jurors. 

"The  law  does  not  require  that  the  prosecution  shall 
eflPaee  every  possible  doubt. 

"It  only  requires  that  the  prosecution  shall  go  l)eyond 
a  reasonable  doubt.  Nothing  in  this  world  is  beyond  all 
doubt.  The  defendant  is  entitled  to  every  reasonable  doubt 
and  that  is  all. 

"You  may  in  this  case,  let  me  say  once  more,  find  tho 
defendant  guilty  of  murder  in  the  first  degree,  guilty  of 
munlor  in  the  second  degree  or  guilty  of  manslaughter  in 
the  first  degree. 

"If  you  vote  for  acquittal  on  the  ground  of  insanity 
you  may  state  that  ground  in  your  verdict. 

"You  must  be  guided,  gentlemen,  entirely  on  the  evi- 
dence. Clamor,  prejudice  or  sympathy  must  not  prevail. 
You  must  be  guided  by  your  reason  and  your  judgment." 


284  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

The  ease  was  given  to  the  jury  immediately  upon 
the  conclusion  of  the  reading'  of  the  charge,  and  at 
5  :15  p.  m.,  Wednesday,  April  10,  1907,  the  jury  was 
locked  up  to  begin  its  deliberations. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

Deliberations  of  the  Jury. 

TWELVE  MEN  UNABLE  TO  REST  OR  SLEEP,  HAVE  HARD  TIME 
—ANY  ONE  OF  SIX  VERDICTS  COULD  BE  GIVEX, 
S.VID  LAWYERS— THAW  GLOOMY— VISITED  BY  WIFE  — 
MOTHER  WORN  OUT  BY  ANXIETY— JURORS  HAVE  PART 
OF  EVIDENCE  READ  AND  RETURN  FOR  MORE  BALLOTING 
—EVELYN  ALMOST  MOBBED  BY  CROWD— VARIOUS 
RUMORS  AFLOAT. 

From  the  moment  they  left  the  court  room,  the 
jurors  had  a  hard  task  before  them.  The  situation 
was  complex.  According  to  legal  experts  there  were 
six  verdicts  from  which  a  logical  choice  could  be  made, 
as  follows: 

1.  ^Murder  in  the  first  degree,  the  penalty  for 
which  LS  death. 

2.  Murder  in  the  second  degree,  the  penalty  for 
which  is  life  imprisonment. 

3.  ^Manslaughter  in  the  first  degree,  the  penalty 
for  which  is  imprisonment  for  twenty  years. 

4.  Manslaughter  in  the  second  degree,  punishable 
by  fiftfM'n  years'  imprisonment. 

5.  Not  guilty,  on  the  ground  that  the  defendant 
was  insane  at  the  time  of  the  shooting. 

G.     Not  guilty,  without  any  explanation. 
When   the  jury   went   out.   Justice   Fitzgerald   ex- 

285 


283  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

pected  a  verdict  soon,  and  remained  in  the  court  room 
until  11  p.  m.,  ready  to  receive  it.  At  that  hour  no 
word  had  come  from  the  jury,  and  the  judge  ordered 
the  twelve  men  locked  up  for  the  night.  Thaw's 
cheerfulness  had  entirely  disappeared,  and  it  was 
plain  that  he  was  in  a  mood  of  deepest  gloom  as  he 
was  led  back  into  the  prinoner's  pen.  There  his  wife 
visited  him  for  a  short  time,  endeavoring  to  cheer  him, 
and  then  she  went  to  dinner  at  a  near-by  restaurant 
with  Dan  O'Reilly,  a  member  of  Thaw's  counsel,  not 
wishing  to  be  away  from  her  husband  if  a  verdict 
should  be  returned. 

In  spite  of  District  Attorney  Jerome's  masterly 
speech,  the  members  of  the  Thaw  family  had  a  faint 
hope  for  an  immediate  verdict,  and  remained  in  the 
courtroom  for  half  an  hour.  Finally  it  bcame  ap- 
parent that  their  stay  was  useless.  ]\Irs.  William 
Thaw,  worn  out  with  anxiety,  was  forced  to  go  to  her 
hotel. 

Though  the  long  delay  seemed  to  many  close  ob- 
servers to  preclude  a  verdict  of  acquittal,  it  was  taken 
as  indicating  that  a  verdict  of  guilty  also  could  not  be 
reached,  and  the  impression  began  to  gain  that  there 
would  be  a  disagreement,  which  would  render  the 
twelve  weeks'  trial  useless. 

Members  of  Thaw's  family  were  fearful,  however, 
lest  under  Justice  Fitzgerald's  charge  the  jury  might 
bring  in  a  verdict  for  one  of  the  lesser  degress  of  mur- 
der or  for  manslaughter  as  outlined  by  the  court. 


JURY  DELIBERATES  287 

One  of  the  prison  guards  with  Thaw  received  word 
from  his  home  that  his  little  girl,  who  had  been  ill  for 
several  days,  was  dying.  Thaw  turned  to  him  and 
expressed  the  greatest  sympathy. 

"You  are  in  a  worse  predicament  than  I  am,"  he 
said  to  the  guard,  "and  I  am  very  sorry." 

When  Justice  Fitzgerald  re-opened  court  the  next 
morning  he  sent  a  bailiff  to  ask  Foreman  Smith  if  tlic 
jury  had  reached  a  verdict.  "No,  we  have  not,"  was 
the  only  reply. 

At  11  a.  m.  the  second  day  the  jury  sent  word  it 
would  come  into  court  for  further  instructions. 

A  moment  later  they  filed  in,  headed  by  Deming  B. 
Smith,  their  foreman.  Nobody  needed  to  be  told  that 
they  had  sat  up  all  night.  They  looked  it.  The  look 
of  weariness  and  anxiety  and  sleepiness  was  all  over 
them,  but  they  did  not  look  like  men  who  were  ready 
to  quit.  They  looked  like  men  who  knew  the  gravity 
of  their  task  and  who  were  determined  to  discharge 
it  properly  if  there  was  any  way  of  doing  it. 

Justice  Fitzgerald  came  in  a  moment  later  and  as 
soon  as  he  had  taken  his  seat  Clerk  Penny  advanced 
to  the  rail  and  said  in  the  quiet  manner  he  might  use 
in  asking  for  a  glass  of  water:  "Harry  K.  Thaw 
to  the  bar." 

There  was  a  ])rief  delay,  then  the  pen  door  opened 
and  Thaw  came  in  ahead  of  a  prion  keeper  and  took 
his   place,   smiling   a  trifle   at   his   wife   and   mother. 


288  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Thaw's  relatives  had  been  in  the  building:  an  hour  or 
so  before  the  jury  came  in.  They  all  bore  them- 
selves in  the  same  impassive  manner.  Grave  they 
were,  but  none  of  them  appeared  in  the  least  excited. 
Evelyn  Thaw  herself  looked  as  if  she  has  passed  a 
wretched  ni»iht.  She  was  paler  than  usual  and  her 
eyes  looked  as  if  she  might  have  been  weeping.  Dis- 
trict Attorney  Jerome  and  Assistant  District  Attor- 
ney Garvan  wTre  in  their  usual  places,  as  also  were 
all  of  the  prisoner's  counsel. 

Justice  Fitzgerald,  in  taking  the  bench,  said : 

**I  have  received  a  request  from  the  jury  to  be  al- 
lowed to  examine  and  have  possession  of  the  foH ow- 
ing exhibits : 

''1.  The  plan  or  diagram  of  Madison  Square 
garden. 

"2.  Exhiibts  A  to  I— the  letters  from  Thaw  to 
Attorney  Longfellow. 

"3.     The  will  and  codicil. 

"4.     The  Comstock  letter. 

**5.     Mr.  Delmas'  hypothetical  question. 

"6.     Mr.  Jerome's  hypothetical  question." 

"The  people  have  no  objection,"  said  Mr.  Jerome. 

''The  defense  has  none,"  said  Mr.  O'Reilly  of 
Tliaw's  counsel. 

Foreman  Smith  stated  that  the  jury  desired  not 
only  the  typewritt(*n  copies  of  the  Thaw  letters,  will 
and    codicil,    but   the  oi'iginals   ns  well.     The   pap(M's 


JURY  DELIBERATES  289 

were  gathered  together  by  Clerk  Penny  and  made 
into  a  bundle. 

The  reading  of  the  testimony  of  Policeman,  Den- 
nis Wright  and  John  Anthony  and  Peter  Barrett, 
doormen  of  the  Nineteenth  precinct  police  station, 
followed. 

Meyer  Cohen's  testimony  had  been  largely  a  per- 
sonal demonstration  by  himself  of  Thaw's  attitude 
after  the  shooting  and  his  manner  of  approaching 
KStanford  White.  Henry  S.  Plaise  was  with  Cohen 
the  night  of  the  tragedy. 

Finally  the  jury  asked  to  hear  again  the  testimony 
of  the  doormen  on  duty  at  the  Tenderloin  precinct 
police  station  the  night  of  Thaw's  arrest  and  Avho 
gave  testimony  as  to  the  defendant  claiming  to  hear 
the  voices  of  young  girls. 

Juror  Pink,  who  undoubtedly  was  in  very  bad 
shape,  delayed  the  reading  of  the  testimony  to  tlie 
jury  by  asking  permission  to  retire  for  a  few  minutes. 
He  tottered  from  the  room  accompanied  by  an  officer 
and  seemed  near  a  collapse. 

After  an  absence  of  five  minutes  he  resumed  his 
place  in  the  jury  box,  looking  very  pale  and  tired. 

Lastly  the  jurymen  asked  to  have  read  to  them  the 
testimony  of  Evelyn  Thaw  so  far  as  it  related  to  the 
shooting,  the  testimony  of  Thomas  McCaleb  as  to 
where  the  party  was  sitting  on  the  roof  garden,  and 
the  testimony  of  Dr.  Allen  McLane  Hamilton  so  far 
as  it  was  allowed  before  the  jury. 


290  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

Foreman  Smith  also  asked  to  have  read  that  por- 
tion of  Justice  Fitzgerald's  charge  relating  to  the 
testimony  of  Drs.  Evans  and  Wagners. 

After  hearing  a  review  of  the  evidence  for  two 
hours  and  a  half  the  jury  retired  to  its  room  at  1 :30 
for  a  luncheon  and  further  balloting. 

Evelyn  Thaw  was  almost  mobbed  by  the  hundreds 
of  curious  persons  outside  the  courthouse  as  she  left 
the  building  to  go  to  luncheon  with  Attorney  Dan 
O'Reilly.  Evelyn  separated  from  the  other  mem- 
bers of  the  family  at  the  door  and  started  to  w^alk  to 
a  restaurant  in  Franklin  street. 

The  crowd  surged  about  her  by  the  hundreds, 
growing  constantly  with  every  foot  traversed.  Sev- 
eral policemen  rushed  to  her  assistance,  but  they 
were  unable  to  keei)  back  the  mob,  which  crowded 
about  her  close  enough  to  touch  her  garments. 

When  she  had  entered  the  restaurant  hundreds 
took  up  their  station  outside  to  await  her  appearance. 

When  the  other  members  of  the  Thaw  family  left 
the  building  it  required  several  policemen  to  pro- 
tect them  from  the  curious  ones. 

Nothing  further  was  heard  from  the  jury  room  the 
st'cond  day.  The  twelve  men  were  taken  out  to  a 
meal  early  in  the  evening,  and  Justice  Fit/gerald,  af- 
ter awaiting  a  verdict  until  lip.  m.,  orders  the  jurors 
locked  up  for  the  night.  Thirty-one  hours  of  deliber- 
ation had  passed  then. 


JUEY  DELIBERATES  291 

This  was  the  second  night  that  the  jury  has  been 
locked  up  in  the  bare  jury  room,  whose  only  furni- 
ture was  a  long'  table  and  some  hard  chairs.  Con- 
trary to  what  has  occurred  at  many  other  famous 
murder  trials  no  information  leaked  out  of  the  jui-y 
room  regarding  the  attitude  of  the  jurors  towards 
conviction  or  acquittal  that  could  be  regarded  as  in 
the  least  reliable. 

Various  rumors  were  afloat.  Most  of  them  had  it 
that  the  jury  stood  10  to  2  or  9  to  3  for  conviction, 
but  on  investigation  it  provided  that  all  of  the  ru- 
mors were  nothing  better  than  guesses. 

Soon  after  it  was  announced  that  the  jury  was  to 
be  shut  up  for  the  night.  Thaw  was  taken  from  the 
pen  back  to  his  cell.  As  he  left  the  pen  he  handed 
out  to  the  reporters  this  note : 

'*It  is  a  great  satisfaction  that  all  of  my  family  con- 
tinue well.  I  regret  that  so  many  officials  and  others 
have  so  much  extra  work." 

On  the  morning  of  Friday,  April  12,  rumor  had  it 
that  nine  of  the  jurors  had  agreed  to  find  Thaw  guilty 
of  one  in  these  three  degrees: 

Murder  in  the  second  degree;  penalty,  life  impris- 
onment. 

Manslaughter,  first  degree;  penalty,  twenty  years' 
imprisonment. 

Manslaughter,  in  the  second  degree;  penalty,  fif- 
teen years'  imprisonment. 


292  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

The  nine,  it  was  reported,  were  veering-  most 
strongly  to  manslaughter  in  the  first  degree  and  the 
three  holding  out  for  acquittal. 

At  noon  the  crowd  about  the  courthouse  was  so 
great  that  traffic  was  practically  stopped.  More  than 
5,000  people  gathered  about  the  building  and  when  a 
rumor  that  any  member  of  the  Thaw  family  was 
about  to  leave  the  building  they  surged  from  one  cor- 
ner to  another,  sweeping  the  few  policemen  who  were 
trying  to  preserve  order  almost  oft'  their  feet. 

A  call  for  reserves  from  several  nearby  precinct 
stations  was  responded  to  by  half  a  hundred  men, 
who  were  distributed  on  both  of  the  streets  on  all  four 
sides  of  the  building. 

Inspector  McClusky  issued  orders  that  no  crowd 
was  to  be  permitted  to  congregate.  No  one  was  al- 
lowed to  stand  on  the  sidewalks,  all  of  the  curious 
being  obliged  to  keep  moving. 

The  jury  did  not  go  out  to  luncheon,  but  had  its 
meals  sent  in,  and  this  added  strength  to  the  rumors 
that  a  verdict  was  near, 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Ending  of  the  Trial — ^Jury  Disagrees. 

AFTER  HAVING  DELIBERATED  MORE  THAN  FORTY-SEVEN 
HOURS,  THE  TWELVE  JURORS  ARE  FAR  APART  IN 
THEIR  OPINIONS  — LAST  BALLOT  SHOWED  SEVEN  FOR 
CONVICTION  FOR  MURDER  IN  THE  FIRST  DEGREE,  WITH 
DEATH  AS  PENALTY,  AND  FIVE  FOR  ACQUITTAL— THAW 
ALMOST  COLLAPSES— EVELYN  BEARS  UP  IN  COURT 
BRAVELY,  BUT  IS  OVERCOME  LATER— THAW  BACK  TO 
CPLL  IN  TOMBS  PRISON. 

After  having  been  out  forty-seven  hours  and  ei^ht 
minutes,  the  Jury  at  4:25  p.  m.,  April  12,  1907,  filed 
into  the  court  room,  and  at  exactly  4 :31  announced  a 
disagreement  and  was  discharged. 

The  disagreement  was  unexpected,  as  the  fact  that 
the  twelve  men  had  not  asked  for  further  instructions 
led  to  the  belief  that  the  minority  were  being  won 
over  to  the  views  of  the  majority. 

News  that  the  jury  was  about  to  report  was  taken 
to  Justice  Fitzgerald  by  a  bailiff,  and  Attorneys  Del- 
mas,  Jerome,  and  the  other  lawyers  in  the  case  were 
summoned  at  once,  while  Harry  Kendall  Thaw  was 
brought  from  the  prisoner's  room  to  face  the  panel. 

After  Justice  Fitzgerald  had  taken  his  seat  on  the 
bench  the  jury  was  polled  and  then  ordered  to  stand 
up.  Thaw  was  also  commanded  to  rise,  and  the  clerk 
asked  him  to  look  upon  the  jury. 

293 


294  TEE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

The  usual  formalit}^  of  ''Jury,  look  upon  the  de- 
fendant, defendant  look  upon  the  jury,"  followed 
and  the  clerk  asked  the  foreman  if  they  had  aoTe(?d 
upon  verdict. 

"We  have  not"  replied  the  foreman.  Justice 
Fitzo^erald  thereupon  told  them  that  as  they  had  fail- 
ed to  agree  he  would  discharge  them.  The  jurors 
quickly  left  the  court  room  and  Thaw  sank  back  in 
his  chair,  almost  overcome  with  disappointment. 
Evelyn  Thaw  and  the  defendant's  mother  bore  up 
bravely  and  on  leaving  the  court  house  hurried  over 
to  the  Tombs,  to  see  Harry,  who  was  taken  there  in 
a  few  minutes. 

Mrs.  William  Thaw's  face  was  hidden  behind  a 
heavy  black  veil.  She  sat  with  her  daughters,  the 
Countess  of  Yarmouth  and  Mrs.  George  L.  Carnegie, 
and  all  began  to  Aveep  as  soon  as  the  verdict  was 
announced.  Evelyn  Thaw,  sitting  beside  her  hus- 
band, uttered  a  little  shriek  and  then  turned  deathly 
pale,  almost  collapsing.  She  revived  quickly,  how- 
ever, and  begged  the  bailiff  to  be  allowed  to  follow 
her  husband  out  of  the  court  room.  Thaw  himself 
uttered  not  a  word,  and  made  no  sign  of  his  great  dis- 
appointment. He  turned  extremely  pale,  however, 
and  was  so  weak  that  two  guards  had  to  support  him 
on  the  way  to  the  Tombs. 

Soon  after  Thaw  was  placed  in  the  Tombs  his  wife 
arrived. 


ENDING  OF  TRIAL.  295 

''My  dear,  my  dear,"  she  sobbed.  I  am  so  sorry— 
so  sorry,"  and  then  she  collapsed  utterly. 

Shortly  after  the  .jury  had  been  discharged  it  was 
stated  that  the  final  vote  stood:  Seven  for  conviction 
of  murder  in  the  first  degree,  with  death  in  the  elec- 
tric chair  as  the  penalty,  and  five  for  acquittal.  Re- 
ports as  to  the  earlier  votes  varied  greatly— in  fact, 
hardly  two  jurors  told  the  same  story,  but  it  was  ad- 
mitted that  the  division  throughout  was,  on  most  of 
the  ballots,  about  half  for  ac(j[uittal  and  half  for  con- 
viction, although  the  degree  favored  by  those  who 
demanded  punishment  from  Thaw  varied  considera- 
bly. 

Estimates  made  as  to  the  expense  of  the  trial  at- 
tracted nearly  as  much  attention  as  did  the  probable 
outcome  of  the  long  hearing. 

Apparently  authentic  estimates  indicated  that  the 
trial  cost  considerably  over  $300,000.  Of  this  sum,  it 
is  estimated  probably  $235,000  had  been  spent  bj^  the 
Thaw  family,  while  the  expense  to  the  state  had  been 
in  the  neighborhood  of  $80,000. 

At  the  district  attorney's  office  it  was  stated  that 
the  trial  had  not  cost  the  county  over  $30,000.  This 
does  not  include  salaries  and  such  expenses  as  come 
out  of  the  general  sessions  fund.  Conservative  e?Jti- 
mates  gave  $80,000  as  probably  the  minium  cost  to  the 
state. 

The  expense   Thaw  had  incurred   in  his  own   de- 


296  THE  GREAT  THAW  CASE 

fense  was  estimated  as  high  as  $1,000,000.  As  a  mat- 
ter of  fact  he  had  probably  not  spent  over  $235,000. 
Neither  Thaw  nor  any  of  his  rehitives  could  tell  ex- 
actly, however,  what  the  defense  had  cost. 

Thaw's  alienists,  it  was  said,  cost  him  $45,000,  and 
his  attorneys  $145,000.  To  offset  his  expenses,  the 
jurors  who  listened  to  the  long  drawn  out  trial,  paid 
at  the  rate  of  $2  a  day,  got  only  $1,536  for  their  com- 
bined services. 

As  soon  as  the  verdict  was  announced.  District  At- 
torney Jerome,  declared  he  would,  rush  preparations 
for  a  new  trial.  He  was  smiling;  Delmas  was  heart- 
broken. 

The  day  after  the  trial  ended,  the  jurors  stated  the 
final  ballot  was  as  follows: 

For  Conviction — 7.  IMurder  in  the  first  degree. 
Deming  B.  Smith,  foreman,  George  Pfaff,  Charles  H. 
Fecke,  Harvey  C.  Brearley,  Chas.  D.  Newton,  Joseph 
II.  Bolton,  Bernard  Gerstman. 

For  Acquittal— 5.  On  the  ground  of  insanity. 
Oscar  A.  Pink,  Henry  C.  Harney,  Malcom  F.  Fraser, 
John  S.  Dennee,  Wilbur  F.  Steele. 

Eight  ballots  were  taken  by  the  jurors  during  their 
deliberations,  with  the  following  results: 

First  Ballot— 'Eight  for  conviction  on  the  charge 
of  murder  in  the  first  degree  and  four  for  unqualified 
acquittal. 


ENDING  OF  TRIAL  297 

Second  Ballot— ^ight  for  murder  in  the  first  de- 
gree and  four  for  acquittal. 

Third  Ballot— Y^ighi  for  first  degree  murder  and 
four  for  acquittal. 

Fourth  Ballot— Seyen  for  murder  in  the  first  de- 
gree, one  for  manslaughter  in  the  first  degree  and 
four  for  acquittal. 

Fifth  Ballot— One  for  murder  in  the  first  degree, 
six  for  manslaughter  in  the  first  degree  and  five  for 
acquittal. 

Sixth  Ballot— One  for  murder  in  the  first  degree, 
six  for  manslaughter  in  the  first  degree  and  five  for 
acquittal. 

Seventh  Ballot— One  for  murder  in  the  first  de- 
gree, six  for  manslaughter  in  the  first  degree  and  five 
for  acquittal. 

Eighth  Ballot-Seven  for  murder  in  the  first  degree 
and  five  for  acquittal  on  the  ground  of  insanity. 


THE   END. 


Chronological  Story  of  the  Thaw  Trial. 


June  2  5,    19  0G — Thaw  killed  Stanford  White. 

June   2  8,    IDUG Indicted   by  grand   jury. 

Jan.    21 — Case  set  for  trial. 

Jan.    2  3 — Trial  began. 

Feb.       1 Jury  completed. 

Feb.       4 — State  presented  its  testimony. 

Feb.       4 — Defense  introduced  its  first  witness,  a  minor  character. 

Feb.       7 Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw,  wife  of  the  defendant,  called  as 

a  witness. 

Feb.    11 Dr.   C.   C.  Wiley,   expert  on  insanity   called   by  defense 

and   sevei'ely   cross-examined   by    District   Attorney    Jerome. 

Feb.  1 2 — Delphin  Michael  Delmas  assumed  full  charge  of  the 
defense. 

Feb.  1 2 — Dr.  Britton  D.  Evans,  chief  medical  expert  for  the 
defense,  called  to  the  witness  stand. 

Feb.    14 — Trial  delayed  by  the  death  of  Juror  Belton's   wife. 

Feb.    19 Evelyn  Nesbit   Thaw  recalled. 

Feb.    2  0-2G Evelyn   Nesbit  Thaw  cross-examined. 

Feb.    2  7 — Evelyn  Nesbit  Thaw   recalled  by  defense. 

Feb.    2  8 — Dr.   Evans  cross-examined. 

March  G — Mrs.  William  Thaw,  mother  of  the  defendant,  testi- 
fied. 

March  7 — Trial  delayed  by  death  of  a  relative  of  Justice  Fitz- 
gerald, presiding  judge. 

March    8 — Defense  rested. 

March    1 1 — State  began   rebuttal   testimony. 

March  12 — State  called  James  Clinch  Smith,  brother-in-law  of 
Stanford  White. 

March    1  5 — Thaw  declared  sane   by  state's  experts. 

March    18 Couit   admitted  the  Abe  Hummel  affidavit  in   which 

Evelyn  Nesbit  is  alleged  to  have  denounced   Thaw. 

March  20 — District  Attorney  Jerome  asked  court  to  appoint  a 
commission  in  lunacy  to  examine  Thaw. 

March    21 — Lunacy  commission  appointed. 

April    4 — Lunacy  commission  pronounced   Thaw   sane. 

April    8-9 — Attorney  Delmas  made  his  plea  to  the  jury. 

April    10 District   Attorney  Jerome   closed   for   the  state. 

April    10 — Justice  Fitzgerald  read  his  charge  to  the  jury. 
April    11 — Jury    called    for   rereading    of    evidence   after    having 
retired. 

April    1  L' — Jury    annoimced    disagreement,    and    was    discharged. 


INSIDE  FACTS  ON 


Pugilism 


BY 


OEORQE    SILER 


77?^  World-famous  Referee 


Fonoiis  coNTijn=--Nan*cnOTioio  , 


BULU  Orim  CAME 

St*wwi  Ajm  Ajvuhmo  St>n  Ov  TiK 

PUGILISTIC  ART 


E 


ARLY  Battles  and  Old-time 
Boxers;  History  of  Pug-ilism  ; 
Counting"  and  Tricks  in  Counting-; 
Instruction  in  Boxing-,  a  lost  art;  Queer  Decisions 
of  Referees ;  the  Old-time  Fig-ht  Fan ;  Heavy 
Weights;  the  Neg-ro  Fig-hter;  Graft  of  the  Ring; 

RULES  OF  THE   GAME  EXPLAINED 
PORTRAITS    OF    CHAMPIONS 

Humorous  and  Serious  Sides  of  a  Referee's  Life; 
Veterans  of  the  Ring ;  Sullivan's  Last  Battle ; 
Fitzsimmons'  Sensational  Victory  over  Corbett, 
and  other  Famous  Fights  by  Champions;  Classifi- 
cation of  Fighters;  Vocabulary  of  Fight  Terms, 


Attractive  cover  in  3  colors,  paper,    25c. 
Extra  cloth,         -       =       -       =       =.    50c. 

For  sale  everywhere,  or  sent  postpaid,  on  receipt  of  price,  by 

lAIRD  4  LEE,  Publishers.  263-265  Wabash  Ave.,  CHICAGO 


KEEP  A  DIARY 


A^id  yc:  may  as  well  get  the  BEST  and  most  convenf^nc 
Diary  when  you  buy  one  —  that's 


LAIRD  &  LEE'S 


Diary  and  Time-Saver 


ISSUED  ANNUALLY  AND  ALWAYS  CONTAINS 
NEW    AND    VALUABLE    INFORMATION      .•      .• 

Besides  blank  Diary  pages  for  each  day 
of  the  year  it  contains  a  Wax=paper 
Stamp  and  Ticket  Holder,  a  Calendar 
for  the  current  year,  also  for  the  last  six 
months  of  preceding  year  and  first  six 
months  of  the  next  year.  Cash  Account 
pages  for  each  month,  Memoranda  page? 
pages  for  Addresses, 

13  FULL-PAGE  MAPS 

of  the  United  States,  Philippines,  Cuba,  Hawaii,  Porto  Rico, 
Alaska,  Panama  Ca'  il  China,  Mexico,  Canada,  etc.,  made 
expressly  for  this  book,  and  many  pages  of  varied  informn 
.ion  which  are  changed  every  year.     Fits  the  Vest=Pockei« 


Full  leather,  gold  edges,  gold  stamped  dtle,  25c 


^ftj 


For  sale  on  all  Trains,  at  all  Bookstores,  or  sent  direct  to  any  •ddress  in 
the  word,  postpaid,  on  receipt  of  price,  by 

LAIRD   &    LEE,   Publishers,  wabaS'^Ave.  CHICAOO 


3,000  SECRKTS 


FOR  THE  HOME,    FARM,    LABORATORY,    WORKSHOP 
and  every  department  of  human  endeavor 


LE  E  S 


» 


Priceless  Recipes 

A  unique  collection  of  tried  formulas  and  simple  methods. 
A  Book  of  Recipes  and  Nothing  but  Recipes. 


NOT  A  COOK  BOOK 


"A  handy  and  handsome 
little  industrial  en<.'yelope 
dia." — Detroit  JourMal. 

"In  it  one  may  learn  to 
make  a  plaster,  prepare  ex- 
pl.i>ives,  put  a  poliish  on  a 
isli'r  t,  etc.,  etc.  ...  It  has  an 
additional  value  from  the 
fact  that  it  tells  you  where 
to  look  for  more  detailed 
information  on  any  one  bub- 
jtict."— Cleveland  World. 


Lee's  ^ 

fPR.lCELES5 

f  Recipes 


3000  SECRETS 

^    r««  Tut  Hone  ftBi     /^ 
M  LAAOUTVrr.  W0RK5N0P 
Ml  titrt  OtwrmiKT 
Of  Hutu*  Inun* 


"A  liandsome  little  volume 
.  .  .  Containing  directions  for 
making  every  iiii.xture,  dis- 
tillation or  concoction  under 
the  sun."  —  Chicago  Daily 
NtrWS. 

"It  abounds  in  useful  reci- 
pes which  almost  everyone 
is  liable  to  need,  and  which 
are  i^iven  in  endU-ss  variety." 
— Cm-re  tit  Uistory. 


3  6  8    PAGES 

Seven  Leading  Departments,  each  thoroughly  indexed.     Recipes  for 

ihe  Druggist,  the  Chemist,  Toilet  Articles,  the  Household, 

the  Farm  and  the  Dairy,  all  Trades  and  Professions 

AS  COnPLETE  AS  IT  IS  EXCELLENT 


Limp  cloth,    red    edges. 
Stiff  silk  cloth,  red  edges, 
Morocco,  full  gilt, 


25c 

50c 

$1.00 


Frr  sale  everywhere,  or  sent  postpaid  on  receipt  of  piice,  by 

Laird  &  Lee,  Publishers,    Chicago,  U.  S.  At 


Standard  Library  of  Mystery 

PRACTICAL   ASTROLOGY 

By  CoMTE  C.  DE  Saint-Germain,  the  recognized  leading 
authoriiy  on  all  occult  subjects.  A  plain,  practical,  thorougL 
work  on  this  all  absorbing  topic.    Over  100  illustrations. 

Cloth,  special  cover  in  colors, 75c 

Paper,  lithographed  cover  in  five  colors,       •       .       •    25c 

THE  STUDY  OF'PALMISTRY 

For  Professional  Purposes  and  Advanced  Pupils 
By  CoMTE  C.  DB  Saint-Germain.  The  highest  authority  on 
Palmistry.  This  excellent  work  was  formerly  issued  in  two 
volumes  at  $7.50.  New  edition,  two  volumes  bound  In  one 
superb  imperial  octavo  volume. 
Silk  clotu,  polished  top,  1,200  illustrations,      .       .    $3.50 

PRACTICAL  PALMISTRY  a  new  edition  (65th  thousand) 

By  Comte  C  de  Saint-Germain,  author  of  that  standard 
authority.  The  Study  of  Palmistry.  Hand-reading  made 
ea.sy  and  popular. 

Cloth,    71    illustrations,   among   them  16   hands  of 
celebrities,  unique  cover, 75c 

PRACTICAL  HYPNOTISM.  Theories,  Experiments,  Full  Instructions 
By  Comte  C.  de  Saint-Germain.  From  the  works  of  the 
great,  medical  authorities  on  the  subject.  Clear,  simple 
style  that  will  interest  everybody.  How  to  Produce  and  to 
Stop  Hypnotic  Sleep.  How  lo  cure  disease  by  its  use. 
Cloth,  cover  in  gold  and  ink  (47  illustiaiions),      .       .    75c 

HERRMANN  THE  GREAT.    The  Famous  Magician's  Tricks 

By  H.  J.  BURLiNGAME.    lUusirated.    Scares  of  explanations 
of  the  most  puzzling  tricks  of  tbe  greatest  of  coujurers- 
never  before  published.    All  apparatus  described. 
Cloth,  special  cover  design  in  colors,       ....    75c 

THE  GREAT  DREAM  BOOK 

By   MADAME    Carlotta    DE   BARSY.    With  a    New  List  of 

Lucky  Numbers.  Brilliant  expliuiaiious  of  all  possible  dreams. 

Cloth,  unique  cover,  hali-tone  frintispiece,  .        .        o    75c 

TWENTIETH  CENTURY  FORTUNE   TELLER 

By   Madame   Carlotta   db   Barsy.      Strange  revelations 
through  tlie  Magic  Circle.    Every  possible  extent  foretold. 
Cloth,  hulf-tone  frontispiece,  unique   cover.       .       .    75c 

THE  SPIRIT  WORLD  UNMASKED 

By  H.  R.  Evans.     Tricks  and  frauds  of  clairvoyants,  mind 
readers,  slate  writers,   eic,  fearlessly  exposed.     Life  and 
work  of  Madame  Blavatsky.    Illustrated. 
12mo,  extra  cloth,  burnished  top,     ....  75c 


k 

<? 


For  salt!  everywhere,  or  sr>it  imsliuiid,  on  rei-oipt  of  price,  by 


LAIRD  4  LEE, 


263-265 
WABASH      AVE. 


CHICAGO,  U.  S.  A. 


Model    Letters  for  All  Occasions 


THE  NEW  CENTURY 

Standard  Letter- Writer 


CM  ic/«>o  n^l  KlVvnf£»u«u*ro 


MODEL   FORMS 


Business,  Family,  Social 
and  Love  Letters 


ETIQUETTE  AND  SYNONYMS 


"It  so  fully  covers  the  ground  that  whoever  possesse* 
P"d  consults  it  when  in  doubt  will  be  sure  to  have  his 
letters  in  correct  form  on  every  occasion," — Pittsburg 
Times. 

"A;  thorough  treatise  on  a  most  important  subject. 
The  business  forms  are  of  the  best;  the  social  notea 
of  every  nature  absolutely  in  the  correct  manner."— 
Louisville  Courier-Journal. 


Size,  7^x5X  inches. 


Beware  of  an  imperfectly  f(  rmed  or  loosely  worried 

letter,    it    makes    a    bad    impression '  and 

may  ruin  your  prospects 

THIS    BRILLIANT    NEW    WORK 

— MEETS  A   LONG-FELT  WANT  -_-^-*— «- 


ILLUSTRATED 


Cloth,  special  cover  design,  75c  Boards,  cloth  back,  50c 

Paper  cover,  in  colors,  25c 

For  sale  everywhere,  or  sent  postpair*.  on  receipt  of  price,  by 

L.AIRD    &  LEE,  Publishers,    CHICAGO,  U.  S.  A. 


THE 


World's  Ready  Reckoner 

and  Rapid  Calculator 


REVISED 


THE  WORLDS 

READY  „ 
RECKONER 


SAVES 


.tS  MONEV-WORRY 


Actual  size  3)4  x5><j  ins. 


320 

PAGES 


Interest  Tables 

Method  of  Reckon- 
ing Interest 

Wages  and  Boar' 
Tables 

Log,  Plank  and  Lum- 
ber Measurement 
Tables 

Business  Forms 

Table  of  Weights  and 
Measures 

Value   of    Foreign 
Coins 

Etc.   etc 


Stiff  cloth  covers,   red  cdg-es,     .     .     25c 


For  Hdlf  ^vpri/v^hfi'/'.  nr  >iriit  pnstpniil  on  vfcriyit  of  price  by 

LAIRD  4  LEE,  Publishers.       CHICAGO.  U.  S.  A. 


t 


A^ 


